


Wanderlust

by Ahhuya



Category: Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic, The Adventures of Sinbad (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen, Mystras isn't dead and just travels
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-12
Updated: 2017-07-23
Packaged: 2018-12-01 08:25:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 24,009
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11482479
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ahhuya/pseuds/Ahhuya
Summary: Banished from Sasan, Mystras decides to travel to the country he has always been hearing stories of. But an inexperienced traveler doesn’t always end up where he wants to be and a lost home is always calling.





	1. Sasan

**Author's Note:**

> My piece for the Magi BigBang on tumblr. It was a lot of fun to work on and I could pour out all my denial for his death :D
> 
> I'll upload the rest of the chapters this week, so I don't spam 25k in one go

Sasan was known as the land of purity. That was, if people even knew about the country at all. The kingdom isolated itself from the outside world. ‘To protect us from foreigners’ was what the knight king would tell his people and they followed his every word. The country would never stop acting that way. And if that was hurting anyone, it was the young apprentice Mystras Leoxses. At the age of fifteen he had still refused to enter the order of knights, the dream his father had set out for him.  To most knights, Mystras was inexperienced, too playful to take on  a serious job like that of a knight. But Mystras knew exactly what he wanted. He wanted freedom.

Freedom, however, was not a thing for Sasanians to obtain. They were all fine with it anyways. The outside world brought danger, the outside world brought impurity. The Sasanians were perfect the way they were, at least that was what they thought. But for the young apprentice, it was clear they weren’t perfect. And if he could, he would escape the knight’s castle and the country surrounding it, the prison that held him.

It was down in the city of Vabel, in the foreigner accommodations that Mystras could find some happiness. There were traders from Reim there. And even if they always brought similar stories, they entertained the young apprentice knight. Some merchants could talk about how amazing the fights in the colosseum were: wild beasts fighting against men, pure because the people wanted to see it. Others would bring up the topic of trade over sea. Sea… it was a thing Mystras had never seen. All he knew were mountains, big gray mountains covered in snow that surrounded the city of Vabel. Somewhere, deep down, Mystras knew he had to see the ocean, even if it would be the last thing to see before dying.

But one certain day changed it all. The inn was once again filled with merchants from Reim, but this time they seemed… different. Three young men of a kind that the knight had never seen before were sitting around a table. A blue haired giant, a teen with purple hair and a kid who seemed like an albino the first time Mystras let his eyes fall on him. They had never been to Vabel before, Mystras was sure he’d know those faces if they did. That meant that they weren’t like the others, that meant more stories.

The teenager was named Sinbad, so Mystras found out. He was a young trader from Parthevia who had started his business in Reim. His companions came from Imchakk and the backlands of the Parthevian empire. Sinbad was only sixteen year old, one year older than Mystras and yet… he had written stories, captured dungeons, started his own business and traveled all over the world without a single care. It was the life the knight apprentice could only dream of.

On his horse back to the castle Mystras finally made up his mind. He would leave Sasan, dead or alive, he would no longer let himself be locked up between the mountains. He would finally be free.

**…**

“Come on, father!” Mystras panted, “If I become knight king, our doctrine, the knights, this country, I’ll abandon everything and leave this place! If I’m the most powerful man of the country, no one can stop me!”

The knight king stayed silent, only looking down at his son. He still didn’t say a thing as he stood on the same ground as the apprentice. No… the teen was a knight now, readying himself for the fight.

It was to be a true battle, a fight between knights of a same power. But it was soon as the knights started their attacks that is became obvious there was no winning this battle. With every strike, the power of the gods turned it back around. There was no chance of winning and Mystras realized that all too soon. But yet he couldn’t stop running towards his father, lance out to attack, hoping the one hit could reach its target.

Before he was even close, he was sent back flying into a wall. He felt the air leave his lunges and as he fell down to the ground, his vision growing dark, he saw the figure of his father towering over him.

“You have fought bravely, but this is where it ends.” Were the last words he heard before he could fall into a sleep without pain. The regret of never seeing the outside world lingering inside him, yet proud that he had been able to fight for his dreams.

**…**

When he woke up again, he was in pain. Though… waking up… he never expected such a thing to happen. After all, he had lost the fight, didn’t he?  

“You are dead,” Mystras slowly turned to the source of the voice, meeting his father’s face in the end.

“Funny thing you’re here too then. I thought you won the battle.” Mystras laughed softly, ignoring the pain that ran through his body.

“Dead to the people of Sasan. Tomorrow your body will be burned, your ashes spread out over the mountains. An honorable ritual for a knight like you.”

“So what do you want to do, burn me alive?” Mystras asked, frowning.

“Tonight you are leaving the country and you are to never return here. There is a fake body that we will burn. No one will notice.” Darius answered him.  

“You’re giving me freedom?” Confusion was the only thing Mystras could feel at that moment. His father had promised to kill him to stop this from happening and yet…

“I am sending you away from Sasan. Go see the world you want to see, but in return you can never come back here. The knights and your brother will think you are dead, any information from outside you could bring back would ruin us. You can’t tell anyone about Sasan either. We are known around but if foreigners arrive mentioning your name, think about the consequences. From now on you don’t exist anymore.”

The knight king stood up and walked to the door. Before leaving, he turned around once more to face his son.

“Leave tonight, there is a horse waiting for you in the stables.” Then he closed to the door, disappearing from Mystras’ sight. 

**…**

As had been promised, one of the horses had been packed for travel. It was the same horse he had always used to travel through the city of Vabel, the horse he had gotten from his father when he was still a child. The animal, soft brown of color, had been named Shamhat by his father, a holy name so he had been told. It was still one of the youngest horses the knights owned and a promising one as well and yet it seemed Darius had found his son good enough to take the animal with him. For a moment Mystras wondered if the horse was supposed to be killed along with him, as a way to stop people from growing suspicious.

He quickly looked over the saddle bags which he found filled with food, water, clothes, blankets and some gold. It wasn’t much but it was enough to assure he could get to another country without any trouble. Mystras already knew where he wanted to go: the Reim empire, the place where all the merchants would go to. He knew what the country looked like and that it was located in the west, on the other side of the ocean. He felt his heart beat in excitement. He would finally see the ocean, see something else than the mountains that had imprisoned him.

He lead Shamhat out of the stable, away from the castle. There was no one around, all were asleep and clearly any knights that were to be on guarding duty were called away by the king. It all made this escape so much easier.

His muscles were still screaming in pain when he climbed the horse to ride it. There had been no time to get proper rest, he had to go now. Rest could come later, when he had finally reached a different country. Now was the time to say goodbye to the country he had always loved and hated. At night Vabel gave of such a mysterious vibes. At some places there would light of a fire keeping the house warm for the following morning. Mystras sighed, looking down at reins that hung loosely in his hands. He would never see it again, never would he see the sun shine from behind mount Dharma, never again would he watch miners leave to work and see the shepherds bring out their goats to lead them to the grasslands further away from the city. There would be no more sweets, though surely he could even find sweet food somewhere else.

It was so that he left the mountains, the sun rising by the time he the last mountains disappeared from his side and for the first the time he could breathe the true air of the outside world. Green lands, the sound of the world awakening along with the coming sun and water stream down the edge of the cliff. Getting of his horse, he walked closer the edge. It was nothing but water that awaited him. The ocean… it was really there, nothing but blue all the way the endless horizon.

Words had left Mystras before but now… his breath stopped, tears forming in his eyes. The world was too beautiful and a place to explore. He sat at the edge of the cliff watching the ocean and feeling the grass between his fingers for hours. Then, he took his horse again and after a quick glance at the mountains, he ordered his horse to walk and left it all behind to find a new life.


	2. Kou

“It’s boring here.” Hakuren whined as he looked over the wide plains of Tenzan. Next to him his brother was watching him.

“Boring because we didn’t go to war?” Hakuyuu asked him.

“Boring because we travelled all the way to this place only to find we had nothing to do here. I was having a great time back home before we were called out here.” Hakuren sighed, crossing his arms over his chest. As he kicked the ground, he sighed. “It’s just a waste of our time.”

His brother placed a hand on his shoulder as he looked Hakuren in the eyes. “It’s never a waste. Let’s say there would have been a war and we weren’t here to stop it. Wouldn’t that make you feel terrible?” However Hakuyuu too felt disappointed. They had gotten a message that the tribes of Tenzan were planning to attack Kou. The two princes and their army were to stop them, but the moment they arrived at the plains, it was abandoned. The tribes of Tenzan hadn’t started a rebellion, instead they honored the princes as if they were their true rulers. It had been a useless expedition, two weeks away from home for no reason. Time they preferred to spend with their family and their people.

“You know what?” Hakuren said, stretching out towards the sky, “I’m going to take a little trip before we go home.”

“So you can get lost and attacked?” Hakuyuu frowned.

“To escape the boredom” The younger brother corrected him, “And let’s say it’s a final check to see if there is really no rebellion going on.”

“I don’t think I’ll get you to stay here, am I?” Hakuyuu laughed softly. 

“Yuu, I’m doing the empire a favor.” Hakuren said as he walked to the horse he had stationed near him. “Won’t you be happy if I find a hidden enemy?”

Hakuyuu felt no need to answer him. He knew his younger brother wouldn’t listen to him, he never did. At least not when it wasn’t needed. In battle… surely he was a great companion. But now there was no need to listen and thus Hakuren wouldn’t let himself be ruled over.

At the sound of his brother’s horse galloping away, Hakuyuu turned back to his men.

**…**

The plains were abandoned, Hakuren found out soon enough. They were already far removed from the small villages that were all over the place, meaning that the only sight he was given was of hills and grasslands.

Still it was more refreshing than being locked up in the camp or the palace. The fresh air always did him good, cleared his head from any unnecessary thoughts. In some way, it was too bad that Hakuyuu couldn’t join him. On the other hand, if there was one reason for Hakuyuu to be worried and thinking too much, it had to Hakuren. And he knew that all too well.  

Though as he rode through the abandoned parts of the plains, he noticed something strange. A horse was walking through the grass, but it was not a wild horse. There were clearly bags hanging on its side. The animal seemed to be lost, its rider nowhere to be found.

He ordered his horse to go near the lost animal, grabbing its reins as the creature was too tired to run any further. As both horses were brought to a standstill, he got off to calm the lost animal and look for any signs of its owner, but there was nothing he could find. The saddle bags only contained a blankets and some traces of food. Whoever had been traveling, had ran out of supplies before reaching his destination.  Leaving the horse behind, knowing it wouldn’t go anywhere, he went back to his own steed to look for clues.  Two hills further, he found his answer. A figure lay in the grass, unconscious. Never had Hakuren seen someone like him,  armor almost glowing in the sun of the plains. However, him being a stranger didn’t matter. He clearly wasn’t from around and in he was in need of help. Wasn’t it a prince duty to help others?

**…**

_It was strange how all stories had told about the beautiful countries of Qishan, Balbadd, Musta’sim and Aktia, because all Mystras had seen after he left the shores of Sasan, was sand. A neverending desert had awaited him, a thing he wasn’t prepared for. Of course he had a lot of food and water with him. But in a desert all of that would be used before he knew it. By the time he could find see the end of sand and the start of grasslands, he was already exhausted. Water and food were no longer present in his saddlebags. Too tired to find get any food, he just let his horse walk. He couldn’t even feel it when he fell of the back of the horse or when a stranger came to his side._

**…**

“He’s waking up!”

“Really?”

There were voices, so many voices. Which, Mystras thought, shouldn’t be possible. He had been alone during his entire journey, there had been no villages, no merchants, nothing. And yet, here they were, clear voices that seemed to talk to him.

“Hey! Open your eyes!” One of the voices said and at the sound, Mystras groaned and tried to get his eyelids to separate from each other. After the haze of his vision disappeared, he saw two young men, probably around his age, standing next to him.

“See~” The younger of the two said, turning to the other one, “that worked.”

“Yes it did, Hakuren. And now that he’s awake, we can ask questions.” The older one said, sighing softly as he turned back to Mystras.    

“What happened…?” Mystras asked, sitting up and clutching his head in his hands.

“That is what we could ask you. My brother found you in plains, exhausted, dehydrated and starving. What were you doing there?” The man asked.

Mystras stayed silent, there wasn’t a thing he could say. Even he didn’t know what he had wanted and why he had ended up here.

“Never mind,” The man sighed, “you can tell us later. You don’t seem to have a place to belong and neither do you have enough resources to continue your journey. Which means you will be traveling with us back to Kou. See it as a journey as a possible spy or a way to get back to the normal world. Your choice.”

“A spy…?” Mystras asked, confused. “Who would I ever be a spy for.”

“That is something we do not know, but we can only be cautious.” He said as he turned back to the exit of the tent they were in. Before he left he turned around one more time.

“I forgot to tell you who we are. I am Ren Hakuyuu, this is my brother Hakuren. We are the crown princes of the Kou empire, here for a campaign.”

Crown princes… of all people he could have run into, he had found himself saved by royalty. He smiled softly at the two princes. “I’m Mystras.”

**…**

“Where are you from?” Hakuren asked as he rode next to the knight.

It had been two days since Mystras had been found by the prince. In that time he had been able to get his strength back before the princes decided to ride back home.

“Sa-“ Mystras fell silent for a moment, remembering he had promised his father to never tell anyone about his homeland, “I don’t have a country anymore.” He answered instead, looking down.

“Looks like yours are quite unique. I’ve never seen them before.” The prince laughed softly before turning serious again. “Not anymore? What happened?”’

“I was banished after losing a fight. However, I was meant to die that day. To be here, to travel freely, it was all I ever wished for in my life. So I’m not mad that I have no place to return to. To be like this is all I dreamed about.”

“So you’re a wanderer now? What places have you seen before you stranded in the plains?”

“None really. I crossed the desert before I got to the plains. I was trying to go to Reim.”

At the mentioning of Reim, both princes burst out in laughter.

“Reim? How much of a traveler are you when you got yourself to be _this_ lost.”

Tilting his head, Mystras looked back at him. “What do you mean?”

“What he means,” Hakuyuu said when he had been able to control his laughter, a thing Hakuren was still trying to do, “is that Reim is located on the far west of the world, whereas the Tenzan plains and Kou are located in the east. You traveled into the opposite direction.”

“How did I-“ Mystras muttered.

“It can be as simple as going right where you were supposed to go left. You’re not an experienced traveler, are you?”

“I never left my country before and was banished not more than a few weeks ago…” The knight attempted to explain as he tried to figure out where things had gone wrong. At least this explained why he had never reached a different country or the harbor that would give him a ship to Reim. It had never been in his reach. While he had tried to get closer, he could only distance himself. And now he was stuck here… in an area he had never heard about, had never seen merchants from. 

“So you really had no idea what you were doing. Then you are lucky that we were on a campaign around these lands. I’m sure father would like to see some new kind of fighting skills because with that-“ Hakuren pointed at the lance Mystras had been carrying on his back, “- it seems you know quite some good moves.”

“However,” Hakuyuu interrupted his brother, “We will need to know if you can be trusted first. You could be a spy for all we know. Being lost and exhausted is a perfect cover to be let inside our ranks.”

Mystras sighed, knowing there was nothing he could do at the moment. In some way it was just as Sasan. People were always warry of outsiders. But it was understandable, especially when these men were princes who had to protect their country from danger.

“Fine by me, but I won’t be staying in your country forever.” Mystras answered, “I finally got the freedom to travel, I still need to see the world.”

Hakuren laughed softly. “Then hopefully next time you won’t end up in the wrong place. You want to go to Reim, right? If you find yourself on an island, you’re in Kina, remember that.”

“I got lost once, I won’t let it happen again.” Mystras sighed and focused on the road ahead again. They were still surrounded by the plains. Mystras could already  see this was going to be a long trip, but this was the free world he had wanted to be in. This was what he had dreamed of. Perhaps it wasn’t Reim, but it was still a different world. And he wanted to see all of it.

**…**

It was a week later that the grasslands had turned into countryside and finally became a city.  Bright red roofs showed up in the bare landscape that was the Kou empire. On the way to the capital the princes had explained the basics of the country to the knight. Kou had been a small country that under the current emperor had fused with the nearby kingdoms of Gou and Gai thus creating the strong Kou empire. However, so told Hakuyuu, the empire wasn’t  stable yet. Some groups in the country of Gai would rebel against the emperor, wishing for the return of its own, independent power. It was because of this that the princes would go out on campaigns, to assure that the empire had not started to fall apart yet.

As they entered the city, Rakushou as the princes called it, the people on the streets would cheer and look after them. Rakushou as the first city Mystras visited since he left, was different from anything he had seen. There were no mountains surrounding the place, no stone walls closing it off from the outside world and no castle sitting on top of it all. Rakushou, unlike Vabel had a clear line between poverty and prosperity. Still people didn’t seem to care. They walked through the streets, talking to each other and showing an honest happiness. No one seemed to be stuck in a constant state of wondering what their religion wanted them to do and what would give them the purest way of living was.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Hakuren asked while smiling to the crowd that formed next to the road.

“Very different than where I’m from.” Was all Mystras could bring out in a soft sigh.

“Mysterious country of isolation, right?” Hakuren laughed, “You didn’t tell us much about it. I’d almost think you don’t trust us.”

“I met you a week ago…” Mystras muttered, though in reality there was no doubt that he trusted both princes. Why wouldn’t he trust those who had saved his life and given him shelter, who were even prepared to let him enter their palace. All while he was a stranger, unable to tell much about his homeland.

Hakuren only continued laughing while Hakuyuu shook his head. They only waved at the cheering crowd as they made their way to the palace, never stopping for minute. It almost felt like the pilgrimage festival, except they hadn’t come down a mountain here. But who knew, maybe there would be a party, a celebration that their princes had come home unharmed.

One part of him wanted to get of the horse and walk into the city. The other part of him knew that he couldn’t leave now. He didn’t have to leave Rakushou yet, he would be able to go there any time he wanted, he just had to find the right time.

The sounds of cheers continued until they reached a big wall in the middle of the city. Bright buildings spread behind it and before he knew it, Mystras found himself inside the walls. There, a seemingly endless structure of buildings had been waiting.

“It’s pretty big, isn’t it?” Hakuren said with a smile as he got of his horse and handed it over to one of his servants.

“Bigger than I’m used to.” Mystras joked as he also got down his horse. In one way it wasn’t a lie. While the castle in Sasan had been big, it had been built in many layers. The palace in Rakushou however was more flat, stretching out over the land and across the city.

“Don’t worry,” Hakuyuu assured him, placing a hand on his shoulder, “if you stay around the eastern wing, you should be fine.” Soon after, his expression turned serious again. “However, we will have to visit our father to report about our expedition. We will not be able to accompany you until later this evening.”

Mystras pouted but knew that this was normal.

“A servant can show you the way to the garden where you can relax or spar with a soldier. Your horse will be brought to the stables and will be taken care of. We will meet up with you there later.”

With Shamhat being taken care of in the royal stables, the princes doing their duties and him being in a strange home, Mystras realized how far he had come and how alone he was. At least he was alive, breathing the air of an empire he would have never seen otherwise. As long as the princes allowed him to stay, he was in good hands here.

He smiled softly as he overlooked the garden. There was so much green within the palace structures. Something like this had always been impossible in Sasan,  the grass wouldn’t stay green and there weren’t enough trees to build with. The stone structures fit its landscape more to begin with.

How long he had been sitting there, he didn’t know. He could see servants walk around, whispering to each other whenever they walked past him. Only one girl had offered him some tea, which he took with much pleasure. He didn’t blame the servants for their behavior, especially with the way he was looking. Sasan had its custom of ignoring anyone that looked different, Kou wouldn’t differ much from it.

Eventually he felt a small tug at his headpiece. When he looked down he saw a child, not more than five years old, staring at him. Judging by his black hair and bright blue eyes he had to be a part of the royal family.

 “Where are you from? And why do you wear armor?” The child asked him, a question Mystras knew he could expect a lot of times. He laughed softly as he looked down at the child.

“I’m from a country on the other side of the desert, where everyone is a knight and fights for their beliefs.” He said, a wide smile growing on his face.

“And where is that?” Questions, questions, questions. It wasn’t as if the older two brothers hadn’t asked that already.

“That’s a secret.” 

The child pouted at that answer, but didn’t go too much into it as familiar voices sounded from behind them. As Mystras turned around, following the boy with his eyes, he faced the two princes again.

“Enjoying the view?” Hakuyuu asked him as he picked up the child in his arms.

Mystras nodded softly, but found his attention being led back to the child again. Hakuyuu laughed softly as he  looked to the child.

“I see you met Hakuryuu. He’s adorable isn’t he?”

The child, Hakuryuu quickly shook his head while a blush formed on his cheeks. “I’m not cute, I’m going to be a strong warrior like you and brother Ren!” He pouted.

“Of course you are.” Hakuren laughed as he ruffled through the child’s hair.

Mystras smiled softly as he watched the group. “I’m sure you’ll be a strong warrior, just as kind as your brothers.”

“Do you have any family, Mystras?” Hakuyuu asked after putting Hakuryuu back on the ground again.

“One younger brother, he should be a few years older than yours. I was supposed to teach him, but I wasn’t doing a good job at it.” He muttered the last part. “But I’m sure he’ll be a great knight, like your brother will be a strong warrior as well.”

The child nodded at that statement. “I will be as strong as my brothers and as strong as you!”

The smile of a sweet child was the best Mystras could see in all of Kou.

**…**

Sure the kid’s smile was a good thing to see, but eventually Mystras found himself getting bored from spending day after day in the palace. It was because of that that the sole invitation to look around Rakushou was immediately accepted. In the short time he had been at the palace, he got his own share of the  hospitality of Kou.

Hakuren had been the one to come up with the idea, but not for the simple goal of walking around the city. Though Hakuren admitted that he did that as well from time to time, today he wanted to escape from what he called a _“boring meeting that Yuu and En can deal with”._ While Mystras had only seen the young Kouen a few times, he didn’t question the fact that Hakuren wanted to be away from the meeting. In the end, he had never been different back in Sasan, skipping training and masses.

“Want one of those?” Hakuren pointed at one of the food stands along the road. Surely Mystras wanted to try it if it weren’t for the fact that his hands were already filled with  food they had gotten earlier.

“I’m fine, we can come back for them later.” Mystras shrugged his shoulder, taking one of the earlier bought peaches and took a bite of it. Sweet and juicy, much like the food back at home.

“Then _what_ do you want to see? I’m in town enough times when I run from meetings, what is it _you_ want to see?” Hakuren said, tilting his head at the knight.

At that Mystras had to think for a moment. Surely Kou had enough things that he couldn’t do back in Sasan… new food, different culture and…

“Girls” He murmured, just loud enough for Hakuren to hear.

“Girls?” The other laughed softly, “I didn’t expect you to be interested in girls really.”

“What makes you think that?”

Hakuren shrugged his shoulders “Nothing really,  I’ve just been surrounded by girls for so long, I didn’t think people would willingly look for a girl that’d throw herself in your lap.”

Mystras blinked a few times, looking at the prince in awe “You just have girls surrounding you? You’re lucky. I wasn’t even allowed to look at them.”

“Girls are boring. When you get dozens of them sent to your room every week, in the hope that one of them will become you ‘future wife’ they’re not that interesting anymore.” He sighed, before giving a soft smile to Mystras. “But if you want to find yourself a girl for the day, we can find a place in the city. My uncle goes there many times and sadly he loves to brag about it as well.”

He waited for a short moment before giving a nod. “It’s just one time…” He smiled, making it impossible for the prince to resist.

“Yuu is going to kill me for this, but I have to fulfill our guest’s wishes. ” Hakuren grinned before throwing an arm around Mystras’ shoulder and leading him deeper into the city.

**~~~**

It wasn’t much later that the two found themselves surrounded by the smell of perfume and cigarettes. From every side of the road there would be women standing outside, luring men into their tiny houses for a fun evening.

“Well this is it.” Hakuren laughed, his hands in his sides as he watched Mystras’ head turning red. “Different from what you expected?”

Mystras shook his head, “I never saw something like this before… we can do all kind of things with these girls, right?”

For a moment the Kou prince was sure the other was going to have a nosebleed at that very moment.  “Correction, _you_ can do whatever you want. I already told you I’m not interested in it. But I heard of one of the best ” He said, pushing Mystras through the streets before they reached a building with a larger crowd before it.

“My uncle always says he gets the best girls from this place. Sure he doesn’t have the best taste in women, but I trust him on this one.” Hakuren pushed the knight into the building, setting him down on a couch as he sat down on a chair in front of him. Surely the girls came swarming around them fast enough, still clothed, but showing their body in every right way to their waiting customers. Hakuren waved the girls away, wanting them to spend their time around Mystras instead, though there would still be girls that didn’t want to leave his side.

Mystras on the other hand was much between life and death.  Being surrounded by girls was a dreamlike state, his hands around their hips as their crawled on his lap, clung to his arms or hung above his head. At the same time it was all too much, all the girls and the possibilities he had with them. He couldn’t find words to speak to them and had to do his best to stop a giant nosebleed from happening.  

In his moment of heaven he didn’t notice Hakuren talking to his girl and sending her away to the back. He didn’t feel like he had to notice, he had all these girls just for himself. But those girls didn’t stay and one by one they started to leave again, all but one.

“Let’s go to the back. It seems your friend over there got you the best thing of the house.” She whispered in his hear as she leaned closer.

Blushing redder than his hair color, Mystras nodded slowly . The girl giggled and grabbed his arm, dragging him of the couch, to the back of the room.

“Come on~” The girl said as she sat down on a different couch that was located in a smaller back room, “Sit here with me and let’s wait for the main attraction.”

Her smile was too pure, a trap for the unknowing knight. The moment he sat down on the couch, he could hear Hakuren’s laughter before the door closed and a bigger figure appeared next to him.

~~~

“And? Did you enjoy it?” Hakuren laughed as he walked back to the palace with Mystras.

“You knew this, didn’t you?” Mystras grumbled, in no mood to talk much more. The ‘priced girl of the brothel’ was more of a monster than a lady. Sure he couldn’t deny that she had served him well, but the image was still a nightmare in his head, not to forget the bruises he had gotten from her ‘love’.

“You wanted some girls. I thought I’d give you the best that place had to offer, uncle loves her and won’t leave her for days sometimes.”

“Must be because he’s unable to move after one evening. That woman has an iron grip, she could easily break my back in one try. Are you sure she isn’t some escaped soldier or experiment.”

Hakuren laughed softly, “Trust me, the monsters of Kou are nothing like her.”

Mystras didn’t go into details on that part, his body still hurting from the earlier visit to the brothel.

**…**

It had been a year since Mystras had found himself among the princes of Kou. He could spend his days walking through the streets of Rakushou, exploring corners he had never gone to before or he would stay inside the palace to spar with some soldiers. But even then he knew something was wrong. It wasn’t Kou’s fault, much more it was his own. Kou was beautiful and while it held the freedom he had been looking for, it wasn’t the place he had always dreamed of. He couldn’t let his dream be taken over by the life he had been given by the royal family of Kou. There was still a world waiting out there for him, a world outside of Rakushou and outside of Kou and Sasan. The other side of the mountain range, in the west.

 “You’re leaving?” Hakuren asked, tilting his head.

“Yeah…” Mystras scratched the back of his head. “It’s not that I dislike Kou but…”

“We understand,” Hakuyuu told him, “you never meant to stay here. You want to travel again, don’t you?”

Mystras nodded. “There is more out there that I should see. “

“Like Reim? Next time, don’t go too far east.” Hakuren laughed as he grabbed his sword, preparing for a little spar.

“Yes, I always dreamed of seeing Reim, I can’t stay in Kou if that means I’ll never see Reim.”

“Well, I guess you would see if Kou were to conquer Reim.” Hakuren shrugged his shoulders.

Mystras, unable to tell if the prince was joking or not, only looked at him. That was until Hakuren looked back and the knight quickly grabbed his lance.

“Then how about we spar one last time before I leave again?” Mystras laughed. And so they did.

**…**

“You’re really leaving.” Hakuren sighed as he leaned against the doorway of Mystras’ room.

“I told you so. I’m taking my horse and will move back to the west.” The teen sighed. His room was a mess, old clothes and smaller objects thrown all around as he decided what he would take with him and what was to stay behind.

“Don’t tell me you want to go back to the desert…” Hakuren crouched down next to the knight and handed over a blanket to him. It was then quickly put into one of the saddle bags.

“There isn’t really another way.”

“You can try going over the mountains. It’s a longer trip, but you don’t have to worry about dying in the sand. There are countries out there and people that can help you.”

Mystras shook his head.  “I can’t go to the mountains. Last time I was with people there… it didn’t go too well.”

“So bad you went straight into a desert?” The prince laughed.

“You can call it that.” Mystras said and stood up, saddle bags in his hands. He ignored the Kou prince and he walked out of the door, to the stables where his horse was waiting for him.

“Hey Mystras!” Hakuren ran after him, “How about you don’t take the mountains or the desert then? There will be ships going in the direction of Balbadd from the south of Kou. Yuu and I should be able to get you and your horse on one.”

His feet stopped underneath him.

“A ship?” He muttered.

“A real ship, straight to Balbadd. From there on you should be able to catch another ship to Reim.” Hakuren laughed.

Mystras smiled and continued to walk to the stables. “I’m not saying no to that.”


	3. Balbadd

Looking down at the bright blue ocean, Mystras wondered if what he had done was truly the right thing. His life in Kou had been a good one. There had been food, not as sweet as he had been used to though, he had friends there and if he had stayed any longer, who knew what kind of future would be waiting for him. Hakuren had always talked about how his skill with a lance had never been seen in Kou before, that it was a thing they had always wanted in their army. But perhaps it was also because of that that he didn’t want to stay. Spearmanship was a specialty of Sasan, one thing of his home country he could carry with him. And as much as Kou had its own way of using spears, Mystras wanted his own style to stay with Sasan, just like his father had wished for it.

He sighed as waves kept slamming against the side of the ship and the shore slowly disappeared from his sight. The journey to the harbor, as the princes had predicted, had been an easy one. He had left the palace in the early morning, finding himself surrounded by grasslands again by the time it was noon. Except this time it wasn’t just the grasslands that surrounded him. There were forests, little shrines placed next to huge lakes and farms all over the place. When evening came he could stay with a family of farmers. The countryside was a lot different than what he knew of Sasan. Back home he would watch shepherds leave the city to bring their goats and sheep to the mountains. The cattle was the most precious thing they owned. They wouldn’t come back for months sometimes as the animals were feeding of the small pieces of grass that the mountains could provide. When they returned they would have the best milk  and cheese to feed the people with. Here it was different. The cattle could stay with the farm and agriculture could be carried out almost anywhere. A lot of it were  rice fields, food that wouldn’t grow in Sasan, food that Mystras wished he would be able to continue eating after leaving Kou’s territory. The only thing he missed on his food were the honey and syrup. Still Kou had given him a good time.

Within a week time however he had found himself at the shore, able to look at the blue water once again. It wasn’t hard to get on board. A letter from Hakuren, telling the captain about his reason to board the ship was enough to be let on. Even bringing Shamhat along was no problem. The horse could be stowed away beneath the deck and as long as Mystras could care for it during the time they were at sea, the captain agreed with anything.

Perhaps, Mystras thought, that was indeed what he should be doing now. The coastline didn’t change anyways. In fact the only thing he could see were blue waves. And as much as he loved the fresh air of the sea, he still had a long journey ahead of him.  He walked down the stairs leading below deck, watching the lanterns sway on the rhythm of the waves. The ships wasn’t built to hold a horse, but with improvisation Shamhat had been able to be transported well enough. The animal was bound to a wooden pillar, the illusion of a stable created by the hay spread around its legs.

“Don’t worry,” He whispered, stroking Shamhat’s nose, “We’ll be in Balbadd soon and then you can walk around again.” He laughed softly as he thought about their next stop. “Well… until we can get on a ship to Reim. But don’t worry, next time I’ll be sure to get a ship that _is_ meant to carry horses.” Sure they would be at sea for a while longer, but the seas were calm, no pirates to be seen and none of it mattered. This was what freedom was like. Not having to do a single thing for such a long time. And that was all he needed.

**…**

In the end he could see land again, or more like a city. The country of Balbadd reached out into the ocean, across the small islands that occupied the coastal area. But even without setting a foot on land, it was clear this country was alive. Like Kou people could live their lives the way they wanted here. At least it seemed like that.

And it still felt like that when he had freed Shamhat from her imprisonment. Leading the horse back on land, he figured he had to get himself a place to stay. Even though it was still the afternoon, it was best to have a room and stable before the sun would set. He found a place near the edge of the city center. Still, the money he had been given by the Kou princes did not help him. Apparently not all countries would believe that the Han was a valuable way of paying and thus preferred things like silver or gold coins.  At least that was one thing he still had, the few coins that were given to him by his father. Sasan’s high quality of gold was a good thing here, though Mystras doubted anyone could see the real value of the money. It was fine, he still had enough money left and the innkeeper was kind enough to lend him a room and stable for six months if he were to help out in cleaning the stables. That last part was no problem for the young knight. Back in Sasan it was expected of a knight to take care of his own horse and to learn how to keep the goats healthy. The offer was quickly accepted after all, six months would be enough to explore the country and find a way to Reim.

**…**

Balbadd, as beautiful as it was, had its own problems it seemed. The place was poor, the slums overflowing with people. Kou had had this problem as well, surely, but in Balbadd it became more obvious. Perhaps it was because he was no longer within the protection of a royal family and actually in the real world. But it didn’t seem like the people were bothered by it. Kids ran around the city, playing with each other through the garbage that had been left behind by others. Maybe, Mystras thought, a life like this was much better than a life stuck between the wall of a castle with no freedom at all. These kids were free, without much worry. But that burden would fall back on their parents and their community who had to do anything to get everything done for the others. Surely that could end up in a strong bond, the slums that’d protect each other… at least that was what Mystras imagined it to be.

“Mister…” Mystras felt something tugging at his clothes. When he looked down, he noticed a young child next to him, blond hair shining in the Balbadd sun.

“Where are you from?” The child asked, smiling bright. Perhaps, Mystras thought, he should have found himself something different to wear than the clothes had gotten back in Kou. Still, his old Sasanian outfit wouldn’t have been any better. The Balbadd sun was burning, and while Kou’s clothes were still holding many thick layers, an armor was no better.

Mystras crouched down so he could be on the same level as the kid. “I’m a traveler from Kou.” He smiled.

The boy tilted his head. “Where’s that?”

“Far in the East, behind the great desert and the plains.”

“You crossed the desert? ” The boy asked, his golden eyes shiny bright.

“I traveled through the mountains, desert, the plains and recently across the ocean.”

“That’s so cool, mister.” He laughed, before looking up at the sound of his friends calling him.

‘Alibaba, what are you waiting for? We’re going to play again!’ A different child yelled at him from a heap of trash.

“When you’re older,” Mystras smiled, “travel around the world and see it for yourself.”

The child nodded and ran back to his friends.

In his few travels, Mystras had not seen a child so happy with nothing. They were out in the free world, perhaps not able to move freely, but they didn’t have rules to follow. In some way those kids were everything he had always wanted to be. No expectations for a future, no doctrine pinning them down, no walls keeping them trapped. Surely a life of poverty wasn’t the best out there, but in some way it had its own charms. Mystras couldn’t help but smile as he walked past the slums to spend time at the sea.

**…**

He would always find himself near the sea, watching ships come and go, seeing travelers arrive and leave again. No day would be the same and every time he couldn’t predict what kind of goods would be traded and how many fish would be brought up for sale. Days flew by fast enough. From time to time he would find himself taking a ride through the lands behind the city until he could find see the mountains at the horizon. Even if he could only see the soft silhouette of the mountains, knowing that there were still miles until he’d be close to them. Out there, somewhere, lay Sasan, waiting for the moment he’d come home, knowing that day would never come again. Mystras wondered if things had changed in that small country at all. Surely Darius would still be king, no knight would have attempted leaving the order again after what he had done and Spartos… surely his younger brother was getting closer to becoming a true knight, it wouldn’t be much longer until he’d be accepted into the order. He could look at the mountains as the sun started setting or when the sun shone its early rays over it. No matter what, the  mountains held something nostalgic.

During the time in Balbadd he found himself riding to the sight of the faraway mountains at least once a month. The sea screamed for the unknown, yet unexplored areas he had to visit while the sight of the mountains could calm his heart at any moment. Six months flew by fast and Mystras knew the moment he led Shamhat out of the stables to go back to the harbor for a ship to Reim that he wouldn’t come back to look at the mountains again.


	4. Reim

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter has an OC in it, but she's not very important

Reim was overwhelming. At the same time, hadn’t any country been like that? No, Mystras told himself, Reim was nothing like Kou or Balbadd. This was the place he had always wanted to visit. The moment he had gotten off the boat and Shamhat had been let out again, he found himself darting around the markets, looking at the things for sale. Only moments later he gasped at the sight of the architecture. Reim was something entirely different. Buildings were covered in marble, temples, statues and fountains filled the streets. On top of pillars, the faces of older emperors looked down on the people crossing the streets while even the streets were covered in small signs of riches.

The people walking around were covered in gold and silver and while it wasn’t as obvious as Sasan, they showed their wealth in all the right ways. It wasn’t strange that Reim valued their trade with Sasan so much. Its products came to their right in a place like this.

The ship had dropped him off in Napolia, which as rich as it looked would be nothing compared to the capital. Napolia wasn’t the destination he had in mind. Remano was the place to be for him. After a quick shopping for an outfit more fitting to Reim, the beauty of Napolia was left behind soon enough for a trip to Remano. The landscape of Reim,  much greener than Balbadd, less wet than Kou was a good way of travel. There was enough space to sleep outside and let his horse eat.

The trip from Napolia to Reim was not much longer than the trips back to the mountains, but it was relaxing. People that passed him on his travels were respectful, probably because of the fact he had been riding a horse, Mystras realized.

It was the same way the moment he entered the city and found his way downtown. Again the streets were filled with marble and everything Napolia had had. Remano was everything Napola was, but on a bigger scale and much much more. There were more temples, even more statues and without doubt more people.

As he dragged Shamhat through the narrow streets of the market, a certain stand caught his eye. Gold was shining in the light of Reim. Jewelry, no doubt.

“These are from Sasan, aren’t they?” Mystras asked as he let the golden necklaces run through his fingers.

“Are you familiar with the Sasan craft? It is of the highest quality. Any girl would fall for a man who’d buy her something like this.” The man frowned slightly before his face lit up, “Now that I get a better look at you, you’re from there, aren’t you? That lance at the side of your horse would imply you have some good status there.”

Mystras scratched the back of his head, smiling awkwardly, “Well you could say I have ties to the country. Although it’s not as much as it used to be.”

“Well now, good sir,” The old man leaned closer, rubbing his hands as he did so, “I’m sure we can get some good deals between our countries. What is that Sasan needs of us? What can we do to gain that beautiful silver of yours.”

“I-“ The man was creeping him out in a way, “I am not here on behalf of Sasan, I’m traveling on my own.”

“Nonsense,” Now the man wrapped an arm around his shoulder, “tell me, what can we do to get a favor from you.”

“Like I said, I’m not speaking for Sasan.” Mystras shook his head, but it didn’t convince the man to go away. Instead his grip strengthened.

“Then how about a night out? Just us two, a night as men.” As bad as that sounded, it didn’t seem like an offer Mystras could refuse. Although the last ‘night out’ with Hakuren still had him scarred.

**…**

Their night out started as they went to the colosseum, where people  pushed each other aside as they tried to enter. The match, so the man said, was meant to be a good one. What kind of match the man was talking about however, did not immediately come to Mystras’ mind. Not until the two of them had found their seats and the crowd started to cheer. At the side of the ring, a gate opened and a child walked in, hair shining bright red in the sun. It was then that Mystras knew all too well where he was: a gladiator match. He had always heard that they were amazing to see, that sometimes the person you’d least expect, would rise to victory. Still this person was just a child. At the other side of the arena, another gate was opened, allowing a group of tigers to enter. In some way it reminded Mystras of the battle he had fought with his father, just as unfair, without any chance of the child winning against the beasts.

But then it happened. With only quick kicks and one slash of a sword, the tigers were down on the ground, dead.

“Boring!” The man next to him yelled, soon the rest of the crowd followed.

“But he won…” Mystras muttered softly, awed by response of the crowd.

“Yeah but there wasn’t a _show_. Don’t tell me you enjoy watching a guy win within one minute. You want a spectacle!”

“I don’t know. It was brutal enough like this.” There was nothing fun about watching a kid fight for their life or having to serve as way of entertainment. The man next to him seemed to ignore him as a smile grew on his face when the child disappeared and new people entered the arena. The night seemed to become a long one.

…

By the time evening fell, Mystras finally found himself freed from the crowds of the amphitheater. Being freed from the crowd did not mean he was freed from him unwanted company  however. The man, clearly happy from the show he had watched, was still clinging onto him as he dragged the Sasanian teen through the streets of Remano.

“How about we take a casino after this? The  girls are cute there, surely you could find someone to your tastes.”

“I don’t want to.” He muttered under his breath.

“Oh come on. Everyone enjoys a night out with some girls. Or are you…? You know…” The man reached to Mystras’ arm, wishing to grab him and drag him along. But before his hand could reach the Sasanian, it was slapped away. Black eyes, filled with irritation looked at the man.

“I know you only want a trade deal with Sasan. I already told you I have no ties with that country.” He had to admit that hanging out with girls, having a nice night out was indeed a thing he liked to do. But not like this. The sight of the gladiator fights was still on his mind.

“You’re just a liar then.” The man sneered in his face, leaving Mystras confused. He hadn’t been a liar, he had never said that he had connections to the knight country. “Your type of guy shouldn’t be allowed to walk around this town. With all the things I’ve done for you, this how you repay me.” Without any warning the man spit in Mystras face before walking off. Mystras was left in the streets, ignoring the looks of the people walking past him. He could hear the mutterings about him behind his back, but he ignored it. He was used to being the black sheep back home. Taking a deep breath he wiped the spit of his face before entering a different street to retrieve Shamhat. It was just the start of a great time in Reim, he reminded himself. The way this had started off was nothing. He was used to worse. This would not stop him from following his dream.

…

Surely Remano had more to offer than angry old men looking for a trading deal. The markets were filled with specialties, the people would talk about daily business and trade was booming.  All those things were great at first, until Mystras noticed the money his running out and his rent for the small apartment being due again. He needed a job and quick. He knew enough of Reim’s society to understand that the moment he’d lose his place to stay, slavery was waiting around every corner. Surely there was the option of selling Shamhat for a nice amount of money, but the thought itself broke his heart.

At night he found himself hanging around a bar at the outskirts of the city center. Depending on the day the place would either be filled with people returning from a gladiator fight or a theater play. Mystras always hoped for the latter as conversations would be of a much lighter side. Maybe the only thing that was good was the amount of cute girls walking around the place, them being customers or the girl running the place, which probably was the reason he liked this one bar the most. The owner, a woman, Aelia somewhere in her twenties, was mostly just interested in serving a drink. Still she was a good person to talk to who knew most of her customers by name.

“Anything on your mind?” She asked as she leaned over the bar.

“Yeah...” he muttered,

“Nothing a good cup of wine can solve!” Aelia smiled, turning around, filling a cup and putting it down in front of him, “Not even the emperor has wine this good.” She assured him as a smile covered her entire face.

“Can good wine give me a job?” Mystras sighed.

“It could,” Aelia said, filling up another cup of wine for a different customer, “you hang around here a lot and I’m actually looking for someone to help me out here. Any experience in running a bar or an inn?”

He snorted softly, “I used to run away from home to hang around an inn in the city. I picked up some things from it.”

“You do know I’m doing you a favor by offering this job, right? I could hire any person walking in this building and yet I’m approaching you. _Do you know what that means?_ ”

The knight’s face grew red. “You like me?” He asked, probably louder than he wanted.

“That you better not mess up.” The look in her eyes turned serious for a moment before she turned back to her usual, playful self, darting around the place to help customers.

“You’re starting tomorrow so you better be back here in time!” She called out to him as he finished his last drink and walked out of the bar.

**…**

Helping out with running the bar wasn’t the easiest job for sure, but it was enough to keep him from losing his home or freedom. To be able to help out more, Aelia had offered him a room at the inn to stay at, a stable for Shamhat being added on top of that. He no longer seemed to be bothered by most talk about the gladiators. Girls visiting the bar loved him, wishing to get a small conversation with the special, “foreign” barman.

Life in Reim had just started to take a good turn when a certain news filled the streets. People would speak of “how tragic it must have been” and “they were glad that a thing like that didn’t happen in Reim”, that “it was good that a tragedy like this happened so far away”.  The exact news was a thing Mystras stayed away from. It was only talk from the housewives who needed a thing to talk about in the time they could be outside. However, he wasn’t able to evade the news when the bar started to get more customers. Even there the people who came from the Colosseum weren’t talking about the match they had seen, but instead talked about the tragedy that had apparently taken place somewhere. 

“Aren’t you glad we don’t have a thing like that happening over here.” One of the customers, a man somewhere in his thirties said as Mystras refilled his cup.

“I haven’t heard the news yet.” Mystras answered, as he turned back to grab  a new jug of wine.

“Apparently the entire royal family of the Kou empire died.” The customer then said and took a sip of his wine. “Not that I care, everyone knows they can’t be up to much good there in the east.”

“They… died?” Mystras murmured, “How…” It couldn’t be true, not Kou…

“Not sure, but someone said the emperor got assassinated and the place burned down quickly after.” 

With a loud thud the jug fell down to the ground, wine spilling over the floor. But that was not what bothered Mystras. They were gone. Hakuyuu, Hakuren… perhaps even Hakuei and Hakuryuu. They had been his dearest friends, who had helped him out when he needed. And now, they were gone.

“Mystras” he felt a hand on his shoulder. When he looked up, he saw the concerned look on Aelia’s face. “Are you okay?”

He shook his head. “I’m just…”

“You don’t have to say it, you look terrible.” Aelia said quickly, “take the rest of the night off, it’s not busy, I can deal with it on my own.” 

Mystras looked down at the ground where the puddle of wine had started to spread across the floor. “I’m sorry about that…” He murmured, not even sure if she could hear it.

She only gave him a pat on the back . “I know, now get some rest.”

He nodded and slowly walked to the back of the bar. Behind him he could hear the customer ask what had happened and Aelia’s soft voice telling him all was fine.

Except nothing was fine. In his room, Mystras was unable to find peace. A part of him wished that he wouldn’t have known, that no one in Reim would be interested in foreign politics and they would have stayed silent. That he would be stuck in the illusion that the royal family was alive and that as long as he wouldn’t go back to Kou, he wouldn’t realize they were long gone. A reality like that would have been possible if he had been in Sasan where news of the outside world would never reach a person. But this wasn’t Sasan. Instead Reim was the place he had always wanted  to be at, and he didn’t regret it, but the memories of Kou came back with ever second. It didn’t feel right that those princes had to die. They were strong warriors, better than he could ever be ad they had a country to rule and people that supported them. Mystras on the other hand had nothing. No people that supported him, no country to go back to. Reim was too different in that part. Sure he loved working and living there and the stories from earlier hadn’t let him down, but this was not a secluded mountain country. This was an empire, where the number of people living in Remano could easily be more than all of Sasan. Here he was a nobody, just an innkeeper, a man with no background. He owned a horse, that much was true, but without any legal citizenship, that didn’t matter.  

A part of him wondered if he even had a reason to mourn, if he had been close enough to them to be able to feel like this. Death, to both sides, had always been a joke. For Mystras it was being almost killed by his own father, for Hakuren and Hakuyuu it had been the war. Now that joke had become too serious.  It hadn’t even been the war that killed them, no according to the rumors it had been the aftermath of war. A country that didn’t agree with what had happened and killed the royal family to show it. He had only been a friend for a year. Perhaps he was better of putting the princes out of his mind.

The problem was still that that part was impossible to do. It kept bugging him, but then again there was no reason to have everything fall into place in one evening. He could just stare at the sky, feeling the city keep on living. It would move forward, striving for a better future and perhaps that was the only thought Mystras needed at that moment. Not everything was to end in that moment. He still had to go on. He had gained his freedom and this was not the way he would let it be taken again.

\---

It wasn’t until much later that he finally decided to go back to the bar. The customers were long gone by the time he came back inside. Aelia was left to cleaning the place. At the sound of the door connecting the inn and the bar closing, she looked up and gave a small smile.

“Are you feeling better now?” She asked, her voice soft as always.

Mystras shrugged his shoulders, not sure how to answer her.

“Some girls missed you, I told them you weren’t feeling well and that I took over your shift.” She continued, putting away the rag with which she had been cleaning the tables.

“Thanks Aelia.” Mystras muttered, leaning against the bar.

“You look exhausted, why don’t you go to your room and rest.”

“I can help clean if you need,” he offered, “it’s the least I can do.”

“Not needed, I’m almost done.” She said.

Mystras knew there wasn’t much he could do for her and that the only way to please her was to go to his bed and rest for the next morning. It still felt wrong. There would be a tomorrow for him while others never got it again.

…

The feeling that something was wrong stayed with him for longer than he expected. It could come up while serving drinks, cleaning the place or when he took care of Shamhat. He wasn’t meant to stay here. Reim was beautiful, there was no doubt about it, but he couldn’t stay at this inn or in Remano any longer. It took some time to figure out what it was that he was fearing, only to come to a simple conclusion. He was afraid to lose those he had gotten close to again. He didn’t feel like a strong knight anymore, not after working in an inn for almost three years. The family he had had for all his childhood was gone, the friends he made after that were no longer alive… it could only be a matter of time before the war with Parthevia would come back and even Remano could fall… and with that his friends. The rumor of the destruction of the young country of Sindria had not gone unheard. An entire country, lost in one battle. The few that had survived seemed to have disappeared from the world. He could have been one of them, Mystras realized. He could have been one of the people that died if he had run to Sinbad’s side when he was free. He could have been one of the survivors, scarred for life by the sight of death and despair. 

“You’re leaving, aren’t you?” Aelia asked him on the umpteenth time he was lost in thought after closing the bar.  “You seem bothered lately, I miss seeing the smile on your face like you had when you just came here. It looks like Reim has been dragging you down more than it gives you joy.”

Mystras laughed softly before nodding in agreement, “I always thought Reim was where I was supposed to stay, but it isn’t. I can’t see myself staying at one spot forever.”

“Then where do you want to go?” The woman asked, tilting her head.

“Wherever I end up.” Mystras shrugged as he put away a cleaning cloth. “I’m thinking about leaving tonight.”

“At least let me give you some food for the journey. You have helped me and the inn very well, it will take some time to find someone who can do such a job.”

“Thank you, Aelia, but I’ll be fine on my own.” Mystras said, smiling softly as he slowly walked in the direction of the stables to prepare Shamhat for a new journey. “Maybe I’ll come back another day, but right now I just need to travel again, having no destination in mind.”

She nodded, “I understand. If you ever need a place to stay in Remano again or if you want a job again, you can always knock on my door. I’ll pray at the Sacerdos Maxima’s temple tomorrow for your safe journey.”

“You’re too kind, Aelia. Meanwhile I have no way of repaying you for all you did for me. But this will be our goodbye” Mystras said, smiling softly at her.

“You kept me company for all these years, that was enough for me.” Aelia replied. The same night she would have to watch him leave him into the dark of the Reiman night.

 

Art was made by Belialequip on Tumblr, who was my partner on this event and made amazing art. I had to share this part of it because it belongs to this chapter <3


	5. The Dark Continent

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realized I messed up my posting schedule and because I wanted to have this story done before I go on a trip... the last 3 chapters will be online all this week

Even though the idea of returning to Aelia was on his mind for some time, he soon found himself too far removed from Remano to go back to that small, cozy bar. His travels instead brought him to different places: the countryside, smaller cities with festivals and the coast with its endless blue oceans. Mystras found himself travelling around, helping poor families out in exchange for a place to sleep. By the fact that he carried a horse with him, most people took him for a rich merchants and Mystras found himself in no situation to tell them that he, like most people, was just a poor man without a home.

Traveling through Reim had become a second nature, the idea of not having a place to call home was normal. It was one night in an inn that he got a new idea for travelling. Two older men were meeting over a glass of wine, the possibility of them being slave traders was too obvious to go unnoticed.

“Have you gone down south yet? Girls from Heliohapt seem to catch more money lately.” One whispered as the other laughed softly.

“Heliohapt is already losing its price, you need to go even deeper south. You might find yourself a lost fanalis there or if you’re lucky you find a Toran village. People will pay a lot of gold for someone who can’t even speak our language.”

Mystras knew to ignore the content of the conversation. Talks about slavery were common in Reim and even back at the inn in Remano it was a daily topic. What did interest him were the places they talked about. It hit him that in the time he had traveled around he had never thought of going south, into the deep mystery of the desert. It was that moment that he decided that it was what he was doing next. He had nothing to do anyways, no place to return to. Deep in the Dark Continent there would be no one who could miss him and his travels could maybe finally come to an end. The desert, the perfect opposite of the mountains he had grown up in, was calling for him.

**…**

The only problem he had found on the way was the one who had supported him since the day he had left the mountains. Shamhat, as strong as she was, would not be able to cross the desert with him. As he reached the town of Cathargo, he realized he had to get rid of her if he wanted to continue his plan and if he wanted her to survive. In his luck the town was filled with merchants, though most of them were slave traders. Selling Shamhat had become necessary not only for the chance of the animal’s survival. Without money from selling her, Mystras was sure he wouldn’t be able to get enough money for basic supplies to cross the desert.

He found himself standing at one of the busy streets where a good amount of merchants traveling from Heliohapt back to Reim. Finally after two days of asking around if someone was in need of a horse, a small caravan on its way to Remano gave an offer on Shamhat. Seven hundred silver coins, it was the best offer they could give and Mystras was in no position to refuse. Seven hundred silver coins and a small amount of food, for that offer he gave Shamhat to her new owner where she could return to lands of Reim where he used to travel with her. The silver was more than enough to buy a good amount of food, water , clothes and new camping supplies. It felt strange, having to travel without his horse for the first time in years, though his looks must not have been much weirder than usual. The bright red hair of the Leoxses family, still with bangs covering his left eye and his unruly hair now reaching his shoulders. The simple toga he had worn in Reim was now covered with a scarf that should protect him from a sunburn in the desert, a headwrap was there for the same reason. The worst were probably the bags he had. With Shamhat no longer there to carry his stuff, he was forced to use a backpack, his lance still sticking out from the side. He was that his looks screamed ‘inexperienced traveler’, even with the ten years he had spent far from his homeland.

As he crossed the guards standing at the end of the city there was no turning back. In that moment all he saw was sand, a bare landscape as he had never seen before. The final journey, a journey into nothingness.

The empty space wasn’t _that_ empty. On certain moments there would a group of bandits, although they were soon taken out in one swing of his lance. Traveling through the desert, with no people to talk to was lonely. He had been in that situation before, when he first left Sasan. There had been a desert back then, he had been found by people back then. But he had been inexperienced at that time. It was funny. He thought that in all that time he would have learned of his former mistakes and yet here he was… willingly making the same mistakes.

**…**

As stories had told, the dark continent wasn’t just a place for bandits and slave traders to roam. How many days he had been traveling, Mystras couldn’t remember, but the sight of a mountain in the desert had him surprised. As he came closer he noticed it was not a mountain. It was a city, surrounded by obelisks, a manmade mountain in its middle. Surely this was the famous Heliohapt, a country Reim had always loved to trade with.

The moment he entered the city’s territory, he could understand why it was such a popular country, despite its terrible location. It was much like Sasan, unreachable but great in certain goods. Where his own country had its gold, silver and gemstones, this country seemed to have medicine, tons of it. Another things that could not go unnoticed were the women walking around. They seemed to know no shame as they walked around with their breast exposed, talking to others as if it was no problem. Heliohapt, Mystras made a small mental note, was paradise.

Heliohapt wasn’t that isolated anymore. They had already formed an alliance years ago, allowing trade from foreigners from other countries. The one thing that gave him some comfort was that even though people from all different countries seemed to walk around, there were none from Sasan. Surely that was to be expected. In the few years they wouldn’t have changed that much to suddenly open the trade. His father wouldn’t be like that, not how Mystras remembered him.

He found a small amount of medicine to buy before setting out for his journey again. The desert seemed to have reached its maximal potential of infinity. Sandstorms would rage through the landscape, patches of sand could disappear and reveal monstrous plants underneath, any wildlife would try to eat anything it found. The idea that anyone was living here seemed stupid by now. They were just rumors. While the Heliohaptans traveled down into the desert multiple times, who knew how far exactly they had gone. Perhaps they thought that at the end of the desert any kind of mysterious community would live and he had been stupid enough to follow their stupid fairy tales. Because of that he was surprised when desert made room for trees and slowly the sign of a civilization came to meet his eye. After a long journey there were actually people out there.  The people of Heliohapt hadn’t just been making a rumor about mysterious people after all.

At the first step inside the village, at the sight of the plants he had never seen, people started to surround him, spears held out to stop him from setting another step.  

“ _[Who are you? What do you want?]_ ” Toran, of course. Mystras knew he could have expected that from people living this far away. He scratched the back of his head, wondering if the times that he had been reading scriptures was any help into talking the Toran language.

“ _[I’m just a traveler…]_ ” He tried to explain.

“ _[That’s what they all say…]_ ” A young boy, covered in symbols of the Toran tribe grunted.

Perhaps he did look a bit suspicious and a village this far from the normal world had enough to fear.

“ _[I’m not… I’m…]_ ” He sighed, thinking about the right way to say things, “ _[I heard there was a rift at the south. I only wanted to see it with my own eyes.]_ ” Yeah that sounded good.

The Toran people looked at each other, whispering small words as they watched the stranger.

“ _[We’ll take you there, but no one ever returned from there.]_ ” A much appreciated piece of advice, Mystras thought as he only needed slowly. They only wanted to protect their village from outsiders that couldn’t be trusted. That no one returned from the other side didn’t mean it was the end. Even if it were the end, it would have been a good end to his restless travels.

**…**

The world was black. As he went deeper down it seemed that the sun no longer existed. The bright sunlight of the Toran village slowly disappeared in a small crack. However, at the depth he was now, even that crack was no longer to be seen. At moments like these Mystras found his youth in the mountains to be a blessing. The side of the cliff was steep, his luggage only dragging him down even further. The rope the Toran people had given him for this final descend was strong, but even then it wouldn’t be able to support him forever. How long had he been climbing? Time seemed to become a pure illusion by now. At this depth there wasn’t even a sound. Small pieces of rock that fell down when his feet settled themselves on the wall, didn’t make a sound as they disappeared from sight. Perhaps, Mystras thought, there was no end. Perhaps the great rift was just a certain death. And what if it were? Had he come here to kill himself? He had been supposed to die ten years ago at the hand of his father.  At least this time he could chose for his own death. Deep down in a ravine where no one could find him…. Mystras laughed softly. It was a fitting end: the knight who was claimed dead in his own country, meeting his end in a place where no human dared to set foot. Wanting to breath the air of freedom and to die in deep dark pit. That would be the fate of Mystras Leoxses. A miserable and pitiful ending, but he could accept it.

And then he stopped. He could no longer feel his body hanging in the empty void. Instead he felt himself lying on a cold surface. There was stone, like the rocks back in Sasan, but different. These weren’t as rough as the mountain rocks. But what did that matter? He had been descending the wall for who knew how long. And he was tired. It reminded him of his first trip through the desert, almost ten years ago. How he had been reckless enough to take his horse and ride into the first direction his could think of. With his head resting on the ground, he thought about Kou. What would the princes be doing. It had been nine years… how much would they have changed… how much would those kids have grown up. Perhaps coming to the dark continent hadn’t been the best idea. He could have returned to Kou and spend his time with the princes again. He could have stayed in Reim, enjoying the job he had gotten there or perhaps visit the country of Sindria, see the person who had gotten him to see the outside world in the first place. But no, Mystras Leoxses chose death, like he always did. There was probably nothing down here to begin with. He closed his eyes, embracing darkness one more time.

.

..

…

_Oh my, you are lost aren’t you? Poor soul… to think you let all your travels end here_

**…**

The next time he woke up, he didn’t feel the rocks he had fallen asleep on. Instead there was a soft bed.

“I see you finally decided to wake up.” Mystras opened his eyes and looked at the direction the voice was coming from.  He was inside a house, which on its own wouldn’t be strange, but he had been on the bottom of the rift not too long ago. It had been dark down there, there was no place for a small house. And this wasn’t just a simple house, it was quite a luxurious cabin. Next to the bed stood a man. His hair was so bright blond, probably ever more blond than the hair of the people in Reim. This man, however, wasn’t from Reim, at least not with that sense of fashion.

“Where is this?” Mystras groaned as he slowly set up.

“The great rift. Don’t tell me you came down here without a reason, do you?” The other man said as he grabbed a cup from a table and handed it over to the former knight. Then he sat down on the mattress.

“I heard about this place…” Mystras muttered, staring down at the dark tea in the cup. He took a small sip, the pungent liquid gliding down his throat. “it was supposed to be special. I wanted to travel again after Reim, but in the end I only went to my death.”

“Not really,” The blond laughed before his face turned serious, “I know about you Mystras. The son of the knight king who apparently died ten years ago. You traveled from Kou to Reim to end up right here in the rift.”

“How do you know my name?”

“I know a lot. I can hear anything that happens near the rift, but I was there when you were still in Sasan. I met Sinbad back there and I know he told you about the world.”

Mystras frowned. This man was suspicious, much like a stalker almost, “Who are you?”

“I’m Yunan,” the man smiled, “a Magi and protector of the great rift.”

“A magi?”

“A great magician. But don’t worry,” Yunan laughed again as he stood up and walked into the kitchen, “you don’t have to understand all of it. As long as you’re here, you’re my guest. And I don’t mind some company.”

“It doesn’t seem like I can get anywhere from this place to begin with.”

“Whenever you wish to leave, you only have to say so. I can teleport you back to wherever you want. ”

“Not yet,” Mystras took another sip of the tea. After a while, it didn’t taste that bad. Maybe after a few times this so called magi could actually make some decent tea. “Last time I spent some time with stranger I had a good time. Why not see what this darkness has to offer?”

**…**

In reality, the darkness had not much to offer. The only light came from Yunan’s house while the rift and its darkness never changed. Yunan was able to leave the rift if he wanted, yet he never did. Yunan had his own way of living. He would be drinking tea, chopping the wood he created moments earlier, keeping the fireplace burning before he sat down and stared outside. What was outside, Mystras didn’t know, but Yunan told him he could hear the voices from outside the rift. Everything that was happening in the Toran village, he could hear.

As much as Mystras wanted to enjoy whatever there was to enjoy in the darkness, he found it to be hard. He wasn’t an amazing Magi, he didn’t have special powers. The only thing he found himself doing at certain times was practicing the old techniques with his lance that had grown rusty on him.

“Why do you wish to stay here?” Yunan asked one day as they had dinner together, “I could take you anywhere you want, so why do you stay here when I have nothing to offer you.”

“I don’t know. Maybe because you’re the only one here.”

“You lost people before didn’t you. You started to fear losing it all again.” Yunan gave a soft smile as he looked at Mystras. “You get too attached to people you just met and because of that, you run away again.”

Mystras sighed, looking down at the bland dinner in front of him. “Maybe you’re right. I think I got over it though. I needed some time alone, knowing my journey would end here.”

“It doesn’t have to end here however and it surely won’t end here. Netiehr do you have to stay alone.” Yunan said as his gaze drifted off to the darkness outside the window.

“What do you mean by that?” The Sasanian asked him, but Yunan didn’t answer. He only smiled softly.

…

“I got you something.” Mystras looked up from the scroll he had been reading to see Yunan had returned from who knew where.

“What? You got me a dungeon?” He asked.

“No I did not. You know how I feel about those.” Yunan sighed, sitting down in front of Mystras at the kitchen table.

“You gave dad a djinn along with some other people. Why not me? I’m strong enough to get one…” Mystras pouted, though it was mostly an act. As good as the stories of the djinn sounded, the people weren’t called _‘king candidates’_ for nothing. And being a king was exactly what Mystras had given up on.

The magi sighed “Haven’t we talked about this before? You are strong, but the potential to rule isn’t yours. And if anything, I don’t want to see you consumed by a power you might not be able to control. I made mistakes like that before and right now… I don’t want to do anything so stupid again.”

He stood up again to grab himself a cup of tea, taking a second one to place in front of Mystras.

“So…” he continued again, “are you still interested in what I actually brought you?”

Putting down the scroll, Mystras nodded. It couldn’t hurt to see what the magi had found. It usually wasn’t much more than a special plant or a new dish he had stolen from a simple restaurant, because for some reason Yunan loved to barge in and steal things.

“So what did you find?”

“Go outside and you’ll see.” Yunan smiled before his expression gained a little more of shock in it, “that is if it didn’t eat through the rope and ran off…”

Mystras frowned and walked to the door. “Just _what_ did you get me?” He muttered as he opened the door to the outside. In the light from the windows he could see something moving within the darkness of the rift.

“You didn’t…” He sighed as he noticed what the small form was.

“I was in Sasan and found this guy. I thought you might like a pet.” Yunan leaned in the doorway, watching the knight sit down on the porch as he let the animal come close. A young goat was bound to the porch, bleating softly as it walked closer to the knight, eating at his shirt as the man took him into his arms.

“To think you would actually get me a goat. But…” He glared at the magi, “don’t tell me you stole him from a shepherd. Those guys have it hard enough with the cattle they have.”

“Don’t worry, don’t worry” Yunan smiled as he looked at the goat, “it was lost in the mountains, there hadn’t be a shepherd there for days. No one would miss him.”

Mystras stood, still holding the young animal in his arms. “Thank you, Yunan. This sure makes things more fun.”

“Now are you saying I’m no fun to be around?”

“You are staring into the darkness half of the time, another part of it you’re hanging out somewhere in the void. I wouldn’t call you the best company in the world.”

“You’re mean…” Yunan pouted. “But you’re probably right… even though you’re not forced to stay here, you don’t leave.” He said as he petted the small goat.

“I’m dead in my own country, the people of Reim probably don’t think I’m alive either. A dark place like this might not be what I expected, but it’s better than nothing.”

Yunan smiled before he walked back into the house again.

“We’ll leave the rift eventually. You could try going to the other side of the rift, but…” The magi sighed and shook his head, “I never let the fanalis go, but it’s not like you would leave your humanity there…”

“The land of the Fanalis? I’m sure it’s beautiful there.” Mystras  muttered before he faced that magi again. “But I’m fine here. Those animals should enjoy their peace, they have been hunted enough to fear humans.”

“Since when did you become so wise?” Yunan chuckled.

“Try living with an ancient magician for more than a year.”

Yunan stayed silent after that. He let the former knight stay with his new pet as he would go back to see if everything was still fine in the rift. But nothing ever changed in the rift, it was quite a boring life.

**…**

In that way it was a surprise when things did change. When the Toran people no longer talked about their daily lives, the harvest or their health. Suddenly there were whispers about a stranger, a girl who had almost died in the desert. They were helping her out, taught her about their language and helped her with her plans. Soon she would come down, Yunan knew that. To have a new guest after almost two years… it felt strange. Scrap that, after a second the strange feeling might not have been from the fact that he would have to stop another fanalis from going too far into the rift. It definitely wasn’t that, it was…

“Vabel!” At the sound of Mystras voice, Yunan looked down to see their pet slowly biting on his hat. He should have known it was Vabel. In the time the goat had been raised, it never stopped biting at anything it found and more than enough times Yunan’s clothes and hair had been its victim.

“Can you please stop him from attacking me?” Yunan cried as he pulled his hat away from the goat’s teeth.

“You know I can’t help it… he gets enough food but he likes to tease you.” Mystras laughed as he picked up the goat. In a quick motion he placed the goat outside and tied it to the house. Vabel, named after his hometown, was a good goat. Good yet disobedient. Though at the same time that made him a perfect pet. As long as Vabel was around, Mystras didn’t feel bored at the bottom of the rift. Yunan didn’t leave the rift anymore, yet he seemed to grow more worried every day.

“What’s wrong?” Mystras asked after he had walked back inside.

“There are new voices in the Toran village. It seems we will be getting a new guest soon. The first one for you ever since you came down here.”

“Now who would want to visit you here?” Mystras smiled as he leaned over the kitchen table.

Yunan shook his head “Not me. The other side. She wants to meet her people.”

Mystras frowned slightly. “A fanalis then? That’s a first.”

“They come and go most of the time. Though they never stay.” Yunan sighed.

“And I’m not good enough company?” Mystras teased him, poking his shoulder.

“Since when do you ask that question.” Yunan laughed and stood up. He walked outside quickly to pet Vabel for a short moment. Things were always like this. Perhaps a new person would make things interesting again.

**…**

The girl ran through the darkness. It was cold, her bare feet almost bleeding as she couldn’t stop her movement. There had to be something out there, behind the darkness _they_ should live. She was looking for her homeland, perhaps even her family. Maybe they weren’t all dead or enslaved, maybe she still had people left and maybe they would recognize her. The life beyond the great rift, what kind of place would that be…

The Toran people had told her not to go, that the darkness only took people and never gave them back. By the way they looked at each other it had happened not too long ago. None of the people wanted to talk about it. None… except one. The young boy that had taught her the basics of the Toran language. While he wasn’t too skilled in her language and she couldn’t understand everything from his, she understood most of it. A man, probably around the age of 27 had shown up out of nowhere two years ago. Just like her he had held the wish to see the rift and after ignoring their warnings he had left. Never did he return again and a man with dark red hair like his wouldn’t be too hard to miss. Red hair… perhaps he had been a fanalis as well. If  he were then perhaps he had found the other side. He had to. Some place down there, there was a new land and she would see it with her own eyes.  

At the sight of a bright light she thought she had reached the other side, but in the end she was mistaken. There, in the middle of the darkness stood a cabin. And at that point her feet finally stopped. She panted, trying to catch her breath as she wondered what the cabin was doing there in the first place. As that question passed her mind, the door opened and a man with long blond hair stood inside the opening. He smiled softly as he noticed the girl.

“You did a great job coming here… Morgiana.”

**…**

The tea, no matter how bad Yunan thought it was, tasted pretty good. Yunan was a magi, the protector of the rift and, so he told her, was able to bring her to the other side. The idea, however, was only there for a short moment of time. If she’d go she would no longer be able to return. Or at least he wouldn’t let her. But war was coming and she knew she had to be there to support her friends. It was a hard decision, but Yunan was a kind man. Perhaps… it was a good thing of she stayed. She sighed and looked at the empty teacup in front of her. How many people had sat at this exact table, wondering the same thing.

Suddenly the door swung open, startling the young fanalis who jumped away from the table.

“Yunan! I found Vabel! He probably wanted to see that other side you’re always talking about!” In the door opening was a man, late twenties, with wild red hair, bangs covering one of his eyes. It took him a while before he noticed the girl, then he jumped back, tripping over the goat that had been behind him.

“S-since when were you here?” He almost screamed. Deep down Morgiana felt bad for the man, but even though he didn’t seem to be threat, she didn’t approach him.

“Mystras you came back.” Yunan laughed as he walked to the man and helped him up. He smiled at Morgiana who was still confused.

“Morgiana,” he said, “this is Mystras, he’s been living with me here for about two years now. The goat there,” He pointed at Vabel who started to eat some of the herbs from the pots Yunan had stored on the ground, “is Vabel, his pet. Mystras,” He faced the Sasanian now, “this is Morgiana, the girl I had heard the Toran people talk about all this time. She wanted to see the other side, but it seems she is staying here. Please get along.”

As soon as he said that, Yunan walked towards the goat to make sure his herbs wouldn’t be gone before the end of the day. Mystras scratched his head and smiled softly.

“Sorry for earlier. So you’re a fanalis… I never saw those before. At least not one that didn’t fight in the amphitheater. I’m sorry but…” He frowned slightly, “did I do something wrong?”

Morgiana, realizing she had been staring at him for a while, shook her head. “It’s nothing. You kind of remind me of a guy I met not too long ago. It’s probably coincidence.”

Mystras nodded “Probably.” He said, but he knew that she probably wasn’t wrong.  

**…**

In the short time that they had together, Mystras found out he could get along well with Morgiana. She would practice with her household vessel, a lot and Mystras found time to practice with his lance again because of that. She was strong, but her magoi was her problem. She had to train and get the use of her energy under control. At other times, she would continue her studies in the Toran language, a language Mystras had given up on the moment he left Sasan, especially after leaving the Toran village. The language reminded him of his home, the religious scriptures... a language he had barely been able to use when he entered the Toran village at the edge of the reef. As Yunan taught her, he would listen in and get back his knowledge of the long forgotten language.

But war was coming, a big war. The emperor of Kou had died the day Morgiana had set foot in the rift and with that the world had started to change. Something was wrong and it had Yunan worrying almost every day.

“It’s getting close…” Yunan muttered as he stared into the darkness of the rift. “We need to do something or the world as we know it is going to end.”

“How about we go out there?” Mystras offered. “You’re a great magi, you can do that.”

“I agree with him.” Morgiana nodded. “My friends are out there. If there is anything we can do, then we should.”

“There is one thing we might be able to do… warn the greater powers of this world.”

“How? I thought Reim and Kou were already involved in this battle?”

“But there is the Seven Seas Alliances. They are without a doubt one of the strongest powers in this world.” Yunan said, followed by a short sigh. “As much as I like to avoid him, we can’t do this any other way. We will have to ask Sinbad to interfere in the war.”

“Then what are we waiting for?” Mystras smiled as he leaned over the table in enthusiasm. “Let’s leave the rift and warn him!”

But Yunan looked back at him with a pained expression. “Can you really, Mystras? Your brother is back in Sindria and your father is part of the Alliance. Can you really show your face to them after claiming you’ve been dead for almost 16 years?”

It was true. In all those years he had been able to keep himself as dead to the world. If he were to face his father then… no, he was a grown man now, his father had no more influence on him. Or at least he shouldn’t have.

“It’s fine. You guys can go and I’ll be in the background. But I will leave the rift and follow you to the war. I am still a knight and I can’t run away from battle.”

Yunan smiled softly. “I knew you would say that. Then we will leave for Sindria soon.”

Sindria would have been a dream, but right now Mystras knew he couldn’t go there. Not yet.

“You have brother in Sindria? Maybe that is why you seemed so familiar to me.” Morgiana whispered from next to him.

Mystras nodded with a soft sigh. “Yeah, but I left him behind when he was only eight years old.”

“Then why did you never visit him again? What happened in your home country.”

“I lost a battle against my father as I tried to gain my freedom. Instead of killing me, he wanted me to leave and never come back, become dead to my own people. It was hard, but I could see the world. And all I had to do was hide that I was the son of the knight king.” It was so stupid now that he thought about it. He had clearly been a Sasanian even without the armor. He hadn’t even cared to change his hair style or to get rid of his lance.

“That sounds difficult. But if you’re the son of the king… do you know the knight that lives with king Sinbad?”

“That’s my younger brother. I wonder if he’ll forgive me for everything I’ve done.”

“I never heard him talk about a brother. You’re so called death must have been hard on him.”

“Or he has just forgotten about me. It’s not like I was a good brother for him when I still lived with him.”

He felt Morgiana’s hand on his shoulder. “When the war is over, I’m sure he’ll be happy to see you again.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a very high need for adding a goat in this fic, okay. Mystras deserves his goat


	6. Magnostadt

_ “We will be going to Sindria then” Yunan said as Morgiana checked over her household vessel one more time. “If anything” The Magi held out a stone in his hand. “contact us with the eye of the rukh. We will try to be at the war as soon as possible, wait for us before you act.” _

That had been easily said. Yunan and Morgiana traveled to Sindria and yet Mystras found himself in the hills near the Magnostadt academy. It had started as any other war, Reim against Magnostadt, one defending the other attacking. As long as Reim and Magnostadt fought each other, no matter what methods they used, Mystras sat by and watched. Eventually the fight ended, though it had costed enough magic and manpower along the way. Whether it was true peace or just a short cease fire, Mystras didn’t know. Still night fell quickly in a situation like this. Even as just a spectator, Mystras could feel he was getting exhausted. Sleeping for only moment, just to be away from it all… it wouldn’t hurt anyone, right? Vabel had been sitting next to him, ignoring the sound of war in the distance. What would war matter to the goat when there was enough to eat on the mountain they were sitting on.

The peaceful night Mystras had been hoping for, didn’t come. As night had set in and both sides seemed to calm down, a sudden energy came from the academy city. A swarm of black birds, clearly visible to his eye rose from the city, into the sky. Soon they were no longer small birds. They formed bodies, three big black monsters. Within seconds they flew away from the city, but not to the shore where Reim’s army was supposed to be. Instead they flew inland. Mystras wondered what the monsters had to do there until he realized. Kou was there. Yunan had told about the situation of Kou and the possibility of them coming to the war in order to take advantage of the war.

The monsters were quickly out of his sight, leaving only a frequent explosion for him to notice. Again little birds started to fly up only this time to come back as an army of smaller creatures. There was no doubt to the fact that the war had reached a new state of ‘bad’.

It was fine as long as it seemed to be a self-defense method. The problem was that soon enough it had gone the wrong way. The dark creatures turned away from the plains, returning to the coast and the academy city. The city that they should have defended was slowly becoming a battlefield, a thing that should have never happened. Mystras watched the fight, as Yunan had instructed him. But at a certain point he could no longer stand by. The city seemed to swarm with black creatures and screams from people being crushed sounded through the air. Mystras had watched long enough, the war was not a thing for him to be involved in, he belonged to a neutral party. However, if Yunan had feared anything, it had to be these monsters. They had crossed a line when they started to attack those who had not wished to be involved in the war, the ones who were only citizens of Magnostadt. He clenched the eye of the rukh that he held in his hand, knowing it was making contact with Yunan.

“I have to go.” He said when he could see Yunan’s silhouette in the stone, “it’s getting out of control, I can’t just watch anymore.”

“Mystras, we are almost able to come to your side, don’t do anything stupid!” Yunan shouted at him from the other side, but Mystras had already put the eye down on the ground. Lance in his hand he walked down the hill he had been sitting on. He wasn’t the strongest, but he wasn’t going to let the innocent get hurt like this. Vabel, still eating grass and still as uncaring as ever, only watched him as he ran down the mountain to the fight.

**…**

The academy city was chaos. Before he had been able to reach the city, a hole opened up in the sky and another darkness fell over the city. A dark orb hung in the sky afterwards, small hands extending from the sky as if wishing to reach it. He had barely been able to get inside the city as its walls crumbled down around him. The dark creatures fell down the sky, crushing any of the buildings standing in its way. People were screaming as they got trapped under the debris. Some weren’t sure if running, hiding or helping others was the best thing to do. In the end there was no best option. The monsters would grab anyone they’d find walking around, the buildings wouldn’t stop falling and any exits from the city were blocked within a few seconds.

“Get us out of here!” The distressed screams sounded, impossible to go unheard even though many were able to ignore them.

Mystras tried to help, tried to pull helpless women from under the debris. It really was useless, he realized that soon enough. The incoming doom of dark monsters was hanging right above him and he knew that trying to block them with his lance would surely result in his death, severe injuries if he were lucky. He had gotten used to the sense of having bad luck as a black foot came down on him and the trapped people. They could only close their eyes and wait for the impact of the crushing weight, wishing it would a quick death.

Except death never came. Through the small slits of his eyes Mystras could see the figure of a girl, long blond braids flowing in the wind as she created a shield around the people, destroying the enemies. It was good enough to prevent death, but still the shield couldn’t hold stand against the crushing force. The shield broke, black piercing through the girl’s arms. Mystras knew her. Surely it had to be the Sacerdos Maxima, here to lead her troops to war. Her shield was only crumbling with every second.

More people came to the scene, a boy surrounded in flames, accompanied by a younger boy, clearly a student of the academy. Then whirlwinds spread around the crumbled city, carrying the monster away from the city, out to the open fields. In a quick moment, it was all away. The battle had moved slightly outside of the city, where figures of djinn warriors were flying around the sky, leaving signs of strong attacks in the sky. The true battle was being fought out there. That much was obvious. But how much it pained him, Mystras knew that he couldn’t help those fighting out there. He was stuck on the ground, but at least able to help as much as he could there.

Still he was able to help some people out. While the debris was everywhere and more people were trapped than he could help, magicians came to the scene in order to help out.

“You want to go out there and join the fight, don’t you?” The soft voice of the high priestess sounded.

Mystras looked up, head tilted over his shoulder as he watched her.

“This will surely end bad if it goes on much longer.” She continued, dreamily looking at the sky, 

“This was exactly what Yunan feared…”

“You know Yunan?” He asked before quickly shaking his head. That thought wasn’t important at the moment. “They’re all owners of Djinn, I wouldn’t be of much help.”

“No, they are waiting for you there.” She spoke, clenching her injured arm. Her eyes did not stray from the dark sky.

“What about you?” Mystras asked as he went to stand next to her, “You’re a strong magician. They can use you more.”

“I don’t have much time left. If I stay here I will still be able to help my children of Reim. You are one of them as well, aren’t you?” She smiled, finally looking at him.

“Only for a few years. I wouldn’t say I was one of your ‘children’.”

She only smiled, facing the sky once again and clenching her staff.

“Thank you for everything then, great priestess.” Mystras said before picking up his lance and running through the debris, to the plains where the dark orb was slowly changing into a humanoid form.

**…**

At the time he found a way back to the plains where the battle was taking place, the battle was reaching its peak. Where the people from Kou had been standing alone, the sky opened and birds flew into the scene. In the sky was a single person, a dragon, with his sword raised high. In the clouds that blew away after a second thunderbolt, the situation they were in was soon clear. Next to the sight of blond women with tattoos on their faces and spears in their hands and darkskinned men with snakes, he saw a sight he was all too familiar with. From the clouds came metal lances and armor. In that one second, his world slowly crumbled. The alliance had come to the war.

“We made it in time, I was worried…” A voice sounded from beside him. Yunan laughed softly as he landed on the solid ground. “It’s good to see you are still alive after all this.” He said, but Mystras’ eyes were focused on the sky.

“Why did you bring  _ him _ ?” He murmured.

“We went to Sinbad to ask for his help and he brought the metal vessel users of his alliance.”

“If you knew he was going to be here, why did you have me come here?”

“I remember telling you you would have to face your father in this situation and you to stay at the side of the battle and tell us how it was going. You wouldn’t have to face the alliance if you hadn’t decided to step in.”

“I couldn’t leave people on their own here and just watch.” The knight muttered, not losing the alliance from his sight.

“And these are the consequences of that action, but don’t worry, your father is not a bad person. He never killed you, after all.” Yunan laughed as he watched the knight king in the sky put on his djinn equip. “And he got stronger as well. If he still wanted to kill you, he’d be in the perfect shape for that now.”

“Don’t make it seem like he’s a good guy now.”

Yunan shook his head quickly “Never. What I want to say is that he could have killed you 14 years ago. Do you wish to go back to the rift now? Or will you still stay in the war?”

Mystras sighed, eying at the battle still going on with the monster. “I’ll stay,” he muttered eventually, “with the new troops here there isn’t much I can do, but I have to see this until the end.”

“I see you got that spirit back that you had lost back in the rift. Being under the people again does you good.” The magi smiled.

“It does, but don’t forget we’re still in a war. There is no time to relax yet.” The alliance was still out there, the royal family of Kou was still there, Morgiana was there, those kids were there… Surely they had to win, surely he could do something. Even if it was just a small thing, he’d be happy.

**…**

With the arrival of the armies of the of Seven Seas Alliance, the war ended soon enough. The monster seemed defeated within a few minutes as strong magic fell down upon it. However, it hadn’t died. There was still a dark monster running around, but inside there was a bright core. Yunan had been the one to notice this as the monster had stopped moving, but it had been Aladdin who came with the answer of who the core of the monster was. The headmaster of the magician’s school had sacrificed himself to protect his country, only to end up on this state. That bright core however was a name Aladdin had refused to tell. It didn’t matter anyways. Before Mystras knew it the boy and Sinbad’s female general were lying on the ground, only to wake up again by the time the monster had fallen apart in a million small butterflies.

And with that the war was over. People could breathe again, the enemy finally defeated. At least… that was supposed to happen.  Still a tension hung in the air as the armies of the SSA had found another threat: the royal family of Kou. Kouen truly had gotten the energy of a leader, though a terrifying one in Mystras opinion.

“Uncle… you promised to retreat…” Aladdin muttered as his gaze went from Kouen to Sinbad. As much as Mystras had wanted to step in in that moment, coming to the aid of an old acquaintance, he knew he couldn’t. Luckily he didn’t have to. A soft ‘tock’ sounded and his attention was set on Sinbad who had Yunan’s fishing rod resting on top of his head.

“We already tried to avoid conflict with Kou. ” Yunan sighed, “Right, Morgiana? Mystras?” 

They both nodded. Even if Mystras had not been there to travel back to Reim and the Sindria to make arrangements, he had been there to get the idea started. After all, as someone who had lived in Reim for years, he knew what the country was like.

“The Seven Seas Alliance has decided to ally with Reim.” Sinbad spoke, shocking some in the listening audience. This was going to be a moment of extra tension, Mystras knew. Kouen had clearly shown his interest in the Magician country, one that was now in hands of Reim, one that would now be protected by  Sinbad as well.

Kouen stayed silent until a small smile formed on his lips. “Then…” He said, making everyone fear the words that were coming, “I’ll be taking this magi.” Within a flash, he had the young Aladdin shoved under his arm and in that moment they no longer felt like enemies.

The uneasy feeling that had swarmed around the battlefield earlier was gone now. Mystras smiled softly but soon enough realized the stares he had gotten from the allied armies. Without doubt it had been those from Sasan that stared at him the most.

“Hey brother En!” A voice sounded from the crowd, making Mystras ignore the Sasan knights for a short moment. “Why would you want a Magi when you could have your own look-a-like?”

Laughter arose at what seemed to be the youngest brother holding a goat out to Kouen, who only frowned at the sight of the animal. Mystras could hit himself in the face that very moment. How could he have expected that Vabel would stay on top of that hill? He was a smart goat, able to find his own way down.

“Uhm…” He muttered softly as he approached the group, “that’s  _ my  _ goat.”  

The first prince frowned before grinning slightly. “Most people don’t bring pets to war and you just got the first goat you found? You never change, do you?”

“You know him, brother?” The red haired princess asked him.

“I don’t forget a freeloader who got that close to my cousins so easily. I didn’t think you’d come back again, Mystras.”

“Long time no see, Kouen.” Mystras smiled as he joined the group of the Ren family members.

“You were gone pretty quick back in Kou. And with all that happened after, I thought you would show up sooner.” Koumei sighed as he glared at Kouha to let go of Vabel.

Mystras shrugged his shoulders. “Stuff happened. I didn’t think you’d want to see me back in Kou again.”

“Seeing that you were hanging out with  _ that guy _ earlier” Kouen’s eyes moved to Yunan who found his own place next to Sinbad, “you have had enough to deal with.”

“However,” Koumei interrupted his brother, “you surely aren’t a simple traveler from the plains anymore. You seem to be connected to the Seven Sea Alliance and Sasan’s king.” The eyes of the Kou princes shifted to group of Sasan knights. Mystras only glared, not wanting to look at his father.

“A simple traveler of the plains still sounds the best. Any family ties were broken long ago.”

From behind his brothers, Kouha laughed softly. “And I thought our family was a mess.”

“A different kind of mess.” Koumei corrected him.

“Sure.” The younger prince rolled his eyes at his older brother. “At least we don’t own a goat or bring it to war.”

“You will never let me go on that, will you?” Mystras sighed.

“Never.” Kouha grinned.

“It seems your father is eager to meet you.” Kouen noted as he was still focused on the group of knights, “He has been looking in our direction for quite some time.”

Mystras sighed deeply, “You’re probably right… Don’t want to see him though.”

Kouha nodded, “Much similar family problems, told you so.”

“I’ll try visiting you guys again if I can. I still miss Kou.” Mystras said, scratching the back of his head.

“You are welcome if you decide to show up. ” Koumei told him, the others nodded in agreement.

“Thanks guys. I will surely come back for some of that great Kou food I got last time.” Mystras smiled. He stood in that spot for a while before he slowly turned away to face the Sasan knights. Vabel, who had been released from Kouha’s grip, followed him steadily.

**…**

Mystras hated every step he took towards his father. With every step he got closer he could feel the judging look his father gave him, combined with the looks of the other knights. He didn’t say anything when he finally found himself in front of the knight king, waiting for his father to speak.

“So…” Darius said, staring at the man who was no longer able to call his son. It wasn’t just the fact that he had thrown him out as a teenager, but the man in front of him had grown taller over the years as well. This was in no way the Mystras he had put into exile that unfaithful night. “I see you are still alive and…” He looked down at Vabel who had positioned himself next to Mystras’ leg. “you found  _ company _ .”

“Yeah…” Mystras muttered, not wanting to look his father in the eye, “It’s been a tough 14 years, but it was worth it. I got to see the world.”

“That’s good.” Darius answered him in the same, stern voice Mystras had always remembered him by.  

There it was. That awkward silence Mystras had feared. They were only standing there, the other knights standing close but mostly ignoring the king and his “unknown friend”. Perhaps the only thing that made the situation a bit more bearable was the presence of Vabel. However, even Vabel wouldn’t stay in one spot and soon found his way back to Yunan.

“I didn’t want to exile you,” Darius said eventually, “I had to follow our rules and I thought that if I would threaten you with death, you would give up on your dream of going away. I thought you would be like me and would decide that your place was in Sasan as the knight king.”

“But I wasn’t and you knew that. You just didn’t want the country to be ruined by the outside world and yet here you are, allied with those countries that you hated so much.”

“We had no other choice and surely you have seen that as well in the time you had to travel around.”

“And now what do you want me to do? Beg you to let me back into Sasan? To let me be a knight again? Just forget it!” Mystras snapped, gaining surprised looks from the bystanders as his voice sounded across the plains.

Darius didn’t seem to react to it. Surely this was still the boy he had known at the time his rebellious youth started. “I don’t expect you to come back, begging to be a knight again. If I were to follow our rules, you would never be a knight again. But what I do ask of you is that you visit your brothers. Go to Sindria and see Spartos. He never got over the fact that you were dead. Once you are ready to return to your motherland, visit your youngest brother. He may not know who you are, but you both deserve to meet each other.”

“I’ll have to talk to king Sinbad then.” Mystras stated and turned around in the direction where Sinbad was chatting with Yunan. “Just don’t think that I am doing this because you want me to. I would visited him anyways.”

Behind him he could hear Darius sigh one more time. “I never wanted it to be like this. I am so sorry.”

Those words, spoken with so much honesty and emotion, were able to reach Mystras’ heart. He lowered his head again and walked over to Sinbad’s side. He knew that had always been the truth, that that had been everything his father had wanted for him. Out of all the things Mystras had had to deal with, being freed from Sasan’s clutches had not been bad and deep inside he was grateful for the way it had gone. Yet he didn’t want to say that to his father. Not because he didn’t want to, it was because he couldn’t.

“That was a short lived reunion.” Yunan smiled as he saw the knight approaching. “I expected you would have a lot of catching up to do.”

Mystras shook his head “Not really, I don’t have much I need to tell him.”

“But you will tell your brother?”

“Most likely…” He turned to Sinbad who had been watching them. “It is a favor I have to ask of you king Sinbad. I heard my brother is a part of your country now. Allow me to accompany you back to Sindria in order to meet him.”

The king was silent before he smiled and put a hand on Mystras’ shoulder. “I already thought you seemed familiar. Spartos never told me he had an older brother though.”

“Because he thinks I’m dead, like the rest of my country.” Mystras said, “But I have to meet him after the fourteen years I was away from home. He deserves to know where I’ve been and Sindria has always been on my list of places to visit.”

 

The king let out a soft laugh and nodded in agreement. “That has been settled then. We’ll go back to Sindria once matters here have been worked out.”


	7. Sindria

Yunan, as to Mystras’ disappointment, had not wanted to come along to Sindria. The Guardian of the Rift knew where his place in the world was and told Mystras enough times that he could show up whenever and wherever he wanted. Thus he would only need to wait until their next meeting was coming.

Sinbad had decided to return to Sindria before the country of Magnostadt was fully restored. At that same time Morgiana decided to stay longer to help rebuild the country her friends and the Sindrian general Yamuraiha. In that short moment Mystras had made up his mind as well. Though rebuilding the country seemed a good initiative, he had already decided that the sooner he could meet Spartos again, the better.

It had been some time since he had last found himself on a ship, especially for such a long time, but the travel proofed to be worth it all. In the bright, blue ocean appeared a rock that slowly grew with every minute they drew closer. In the middle was an opening, the gate leading to the country. Surely behind that stone façade lay a town as bright as the sun shining above it.

“Welcome to Sindria, my kingdom.” The king exclaimed as he hung over the railing with Mystras. “It’s a country I created so everyone could have a place they can call home, even when their old homes are no longer available. I’m sure you’ll like it here.”

“I’m here to meet my brother though.” Mystras laughed. The idea of a home for those without any sounded amazing and judging by the liveliness of the country, it had been a successful plan.

“That’s your main objective here, but no one says you can’t stay.” The king replied as they watched the shore come closer.

\---

On the shore were three men, clearly waiting for the ship containing the king. A white haired man, freckles covering his face, a dark skinned man with the white hair such as those of Heliohapt and fanalis in gold armor. The white haired man bowed the moment the king set foot on shore.

“Your save return gives me joy, my lord.” He spoke before he straightened again, “It is good to see you again as well, lord Drakon.” He said to the general who had accompanied them back as well.

“Did anything happen in the short time I was gone, Ja’far?” Sinbad asked as he joined with his generals.

Ja’far shook his head. “The weeks have gone by very peaceful, the number of new residents was fairly low this time and the shortage of houses has been dealt with.”

Suddenly the Heliohaptan spoke up, “Hey Sinbad! Did you bring a guest or something?” He shouted as he noticed Mystras still standing near the ship.

“Ah yes, please meet Mystras. We met back at the Magnostadt. He came here to meet Spartos.”

“Ha,” the Helioptan sneered, “good luck with that. That guy has been locking himself up in his room the entire week now. And every time Pisti or I come to his door to invite him for a fun night out it’s always the same _‘no Sharrkan, I don’t feel like doing that this month.’_ Without any explanation why. He’s always like this around this time of the year.”

“Surely this man can make a difference in that. They’re old acquaintances.” The king laughed and motioned Mystras to come closer.

“I’ll have them bring your goat to the palace later. I’m sure you want to see your brother as soon as possible.” Sinbad said as he put an arm around his shoulder.

Mystras nodded and followed the king and his group to the top of the hill, where the palace was waiting for him.

**…**

“This will be fine, I’m sure he’s glad to see you.” The king said as he stopped in front of a door. He knocked softly, waiting for response that he did not get.

“Spartos, are you inside? I need to talk to you.” Sinbad said, the tone in his voice calm but demanding.

“I’m busy, my lord. Can I come back to you later?” Sounded from the other side.

“You don’t have any time for the brother that came to visit you?” Sinbad laughed softly.

“My brother is back in Sasan. If he were to visit he or my father would let me know about that before he’d arrive.”

“And what about your other brother?” The king asked. A silence followed.

“Sinbad…” The voice was softer now, hesitating almost, “you know I only have one brother. Mystras… died when I was still a kid.”

Hearing that, Mystras could feel his heart shatter. “We can just go, Sinbad.” He whispered, afraid his brother would even hear him speak. “It’s probably better if I leave again.”

“Nonsense.” Sinbad whispered back to him before he turned back to the door and knocked again. “If you don’t at least open the door, he’s back at the dark continent before you know it. At least meet him, Spartos. You can judge after that.”

“Fine,” sounded, “just come in then.”

Sinbad smiled. “You heard him, go in.” He said to the man beside him and walked away. “I’ll leave the two of you alone, but you know where to find me if needed.”

Mystras sighed as he watched the king disappear. Hesitant, he took the door handle. This had been a moment he had waited for, a moment he never thought he would get. And yet here he was, one door away from being reunited with his brother and yet he felt himself unable to do so. He had been a terrible brother, he had left Spartos when he was only eight years old and now what would he have to say. _“Sorry you thought I was dead all these years but in reality I was traveling around the world and raising a goat with a shady magi”_ No one, especially not his own family, would take that seriously. Perhaps it was better if he had never left the rift, he had never tried to come back to his family and had accepted that his freedom had come with one price he could never accept. He shook his head as he let go of the door again. He couldn’t do it.

As he turned away from the door, ready to grab the first ship away from the island, he heard the door open.

“Sinbad, are you still there?” The guy that Mystras met eyes with was without doubt his brother. Though he was no longer the child that Mystras had left in Sasan, that bright red, straight hair could be recognized anywhere.

“Spartos…” Mystras whispered as he saw him. “You’re really here…”

**…**

Spartos wasn’t sure when it had been that his brother left him. All he knew was that he had been there that day. He had hidden behind the knights that were watching the fight between his father and so called foolish brother. But Spartos had always known that Mystras wasn’t foolish. In the mind of that eight year old child, Mystras was the best knight around. He would teach him to fight or read scriptures together before going to bed. But all of a sudden Mystras had been gone. Spartos never got to see his brother’s body, there was only ash that his father spread across the mountains.

All Spartos knew was that it had been at the end of spring that his brother disappeared from his life. And it was because of that that he gotten the habit to isolate himself from the others around this time of year. His brother had fought for his own freedom, a freedom Spartos was now living. If things had been different, if Mystras had waited longer to take a chance to be free, it would have been him sitting here instead of Spartos. It was an idea that came back to him every year. Maybe it was stupid that after fourteen years he hadn’t been able to let Mystras go, but he didn’t want to forget him. Darius never seemed to care, he ignored any mention of his first son. The knight only had two sons, the third was long gone.

In his attempt to be alone in thoughts, he had not expected to hear his king knocking on the door. If anyone knew about his behavior, it would have been Sinbad… so why was he here? As expected any attempt to have the king leave him alone didn’t work. And then he mentioned the one thing Spartos didn’t know how to answer to: his brother. Not his younger brother who was still under Darius’ wing, _safe_ from any danger or corruption. No he had been specifically talking about Mystras. In the end he couldn’t do anything else than to allow the king to come inside, a thing he didn’t seem to do. Maybe he didn’t want to intrude after all or maybe it was another way to see if Spartos didn’t want to join the rest of the generals. Whatever the reason was that Sinbad had mentioned his dead brother, Spartos had found some curiosity in him, at least enough to go to the door and open it.

It seemed like no one was there. Sinbad seemed to have walked off again, leaving only one other person in the hallway. While no longer resembling much of a Sasan knight, it didn’t take too long before Spartos realized what was going on. When the man turned around and one eye was covered under bright red bangs, a mutter of his name sounding through the hallway, Spartos knew it for sure. He was really there.

“You were supposed to be dead…” Was all Spartos could find to say.

His older brother smiled softly, trying to hide his deeper emotions. “Sorry.” He said and walked closer, “I’m sorry that I left you back then and that I couldn’t be with you all those years. But I’m back, Spartos.”

It was too much like a dream, but when he felt Mystras’ arms around him, being held close in a warm embrace, he knew it was reality. His brother had returned, he had never been dead in the first place. And with that realization he let his tears flow.

**…**

The two had a lot of catching up to do. While Spartos wanted to know why his brother had left and where he had been, Mystras was interested in all the other thing. In particular he wanted to know how his father had allowed to lift the strong rules of the country and how his brother had been able to join a man like Sinbad. Eventually they found a way to have both of them talk about it. Spartos would start, after that it was up to Mystras. Spartos figured that his older brother had more to tell than ‘ _we got an alliance with Sinbad and I was sent out as a diplomat_ ’. Mystras enjoyed every bit of it, the stories of what his brother had been doing in the time he had tried to find a place to stay on the planet.

“Father always said that even if you were a bad example, you were an image to look up to. He didn’t even have to say so, I always wanted to become as strong as you were.”

“You became a general, surely you are stronger than me now. I only traveled around the world and stayed away from war. Dad must have trained you well.”

“I doubt it. You are still one of the strongest knights of Sasan”

“Except that I no longer live in Sasan.” Mystras interrupted him, sighing, “Dad made that clear enough fourteen years ago. I have lived without being connected to Sasan for ages, denying my roots any time I met someone.”

“Do you miss it then, do you want to return to Sasan?” Spartos asked, “If you ask father about it, surely he will allow you to come back. You have spent fourteen full years  outside of the country, Sasan has changed ever since we got in the alliance with Sinbad. Surely he can’t refuse you if you wish to return to the country you were exiled from.”

Mystras shook his head. “I know he’ll have me back, we talked back in Magnostadt, but I don’t want to. I might visit later, but I don’t want to be bound by the rules there again.”

He looked at his brother and gave him a soft smile, “You should understand since you’ve been in Sindria for years. Sasan isn’t the best country out there and I don’t want to be driven crazy by its rules again.”

“And if I were to return to Sasan again? Would you come back enough times to help me? After you left, father made me his heir, the order believes in my power… but I can only disappoint them.”

The sudden feel of a hand on his shoulder made Spartos look up to his brother.

“Don’t you already have people look up to you? You a general in such a beautiful country, the citizens will come to you when they’re in need and there are enough who come here to study.” Mystras told him.

The younger brother smiled softly. “I guess you’re right. I might not be like Sharrkan, Masrur or Yamuraiha, but I _was_ able to teach someone advanced spearmanship.”

“See? I knew you could do something like that.”

“It was just Sinbad’s idea. He had all his generals train those kids from Balbadd, when a prince from Kou came, I seemed to be the only one who could learn him things.”

Mystras frowned slightly, “Kou?” He asked, tilting his head, “Who came here from Kou?” Thinking about its political situations, the possibility of it being Kouen didn’t seem big, neither would it be Koumei who evaded any kind of fighting.

“The fourth prince, Ren Hakuryuu. He was an interesting guy, wanted to be stronger no matter what.”

“I see… so that is what he became.” Mystras sighed, seeing how his brother grew slightly concerned, as if to wonder what it was that Mystras knew about the child. “It’s nothing important…” Mystras shook his head, “he probably doesn’t remember me anyways. It’s been more than ten years since I last saw him. No way he would remember a simple freeloading knight, not after all that happened after that.”

“We all had our own experiences. Like how I had to believe for years that you were dead. That from one day on you were no longer with me. It was difficult.”

“I’m sorry, Spartos. But I was never allowed to come back to Sasan and I never knew what you were doing. But I might stay here for a while. The island seems fine and Sinbad looks like a good man.”

The younger knight let out a soft laugh. “You could have been in my position if you had stayed in Sasan a little longer. We joined the alliance not too long after you left. You could have joined Sinbad on his travels and be a diplomat in my place.”

“Are you suggesting I didn’t enjoy the travels I had on my own? I’m sure the memories I made are some I couldn’t have had if I were with Sinbad only. Plus,” he grinned and looked at the courtyard where a young Artemyran, Pisti as he had been told,  was playing with Vabel, “I wouldn’t have met some of the amazing people that have made who I am.”

“I will have to say the same thing. I felt terrible when you were gone, but at the same time you lay out this way for me to go on. Without your sacrifice I wouldn’t have been able to be at this place and be friends with these amazing people. For that I’m grateful.”

He groaned softly at a poke he got in his side from Mystras.

“Before we’re going to get all sentimental here, let’s grab something to eat.”

Spartos nodded and walked with his brother back down to the dinner room. On the way there surprised looks came to him from all generals who would ask why their friend had found such a good mood from. The answer to all of it was short and simple:

_His long lost brother had finally returned home._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that is where it ends. I'm planning on doing some omakes later, mostly for the Kou and Sindria arc because I feel like I never had enough time to work those out.
> 
> Again, check out Belialequip's art work for the fic: http://belialequip.tumblr.com/post/162918214472


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